Pulling Balsam in Besselsleigh Woods - Year 2
06 Jun 2025
Himalayan Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) was introduced into Britain in Victorian times as a cheaper alternative to orchids that could be grown in a garden. And grow it did. Through its very efficent seed dispersal it soon escaped gardens and became an invasive species. It prefers damp ground and has colonised many river banks, forming stands up to 2m in height, preventing any native species from growing there.
It has become established in Besselsleigh Woods, in the damper areas, and has taken over several areas completely.
But now we are fighting back! The Earth Trust (who now manage the woods) are organising balsam pulling sessions. Here, the balsam plants are pulled out by the roots to prevent any regrowth. This is quite an easy (and very satisfying) thing to do, as they root very shallowly and can be removed from the soil with a steady pull. This needs to be done now, before the plants set seed, because doing so later just spreads the seed along with uprooted plants, spreading the balsam even further.
The first two session were this Thursday (5th) and Friday (6th). Jake from the Earth Trust led a band of his volunteers, who were joined by Green Appleton and Wood Group, and after an introductory tour of the woods, pulling began in earnest at the patch of balsam by the Osse Brook at the Appleton entrance. Impressive amounts of balsam were pulled, and put in sacks to be taken away for composting. The sessions were very sociable as well as hard-working, with volunteers breaking off for coffee and lunch, sitting on logs by the brook.
But it's not done yet! The Earth Trust are running more sessions next week, on Thursday, 10am in Besselsleigh Woods. In addition, Green Appleton are going to run two sessions on Wednesday evenings (11th and 18th June) at 7pm. This way we hope some people with commitments during the day can join in.
Can you help?
The more people who get involved, the more balsam we can pull!
The daytime sessions are very sociable, and you are encouraged to bring a flask of tea/coffee, and lunch if you are planning on staying till the end. You don't need any gardening skills, or to be particularly strong, so come to the woods and beat back the invader!
There will be seeds from the plants already in the soil, so no matter what we do this year, the balsam will regrow, so this exercise will need to be repeated next year.
