Himalayan balsam was introduced into Kew Gardens Royal Botanic Gardens in 1839, but it escaped and is now one of the UK's most invasive plants. It blocks out light and crowds out our native local plants, it destroys riverbanks, it upsets how our natural pollinators function (bees and others), it destroys habitats for animals (remember we have water voles in Cheadle), and its seed pods explode, transporting seeds many meters. To control this plant and to protect our wonderful