BUTTERBUR / common butterbur : Petasites hybridus
Not to be confused with the invasive white butterbur : Petasites albus See index.asp?pageid=737870
This is a surprisingly common sight in such places as alongside the Forth and Clyde Canal in Bowling. The lush large leaves are actually quite attractive in this setting, but this plant ousts what should be growing there naturally. Interestingly, it looks quite different at the beginning of the season, smaller leaves and clusters of tufty white flowers. At its largest, it forms a formidable barrier for the likes of us although smaller creatures are uninhibited, some chewing its leaves to bits.
Common Butterbur being a native species is not a problem here.
The White Butterbur is an invasive species. Also see INVASIVE SPECIES : index.asp?pageid=732296
The Invasive Species website describes it further : It appears as flowers early in the year (Feb - May) with leaves appearing after flowering. These spiked white flower heads dominate damp riverside areas. The plants leaves are small when the plants are flowering, but later they become much larger, up to 30cm across. They resemble rhubarb leaves, but slightly more heart-shaped and grow low, forming dense carpets completely dominating the ground.
Butterbur has a rhizome root, so spreads readily in damp ground along rivers and road verges. It can regenerate from fragments of rhizome, which can be carried along river corridors by the water. It has invaded many areas of disturbed flood-prone ground.
That certainly describes what we see along the canalside.
Butterbur along the towpath / cyclepath at Bowling.
Well chewed.
SCOTTISH INVASIVE SPECIES INITIATIVE website : https://www.invasivespecies.scot/white-butterbur
SCOTLANDS NATURE website : https://scotlandsnature.wordpress.com/2020/05/08/buttery-business-the-challenge-of-the-invasive-white-butterbur/
