Japanese knotweed, or
Polygonum cuspidatum is an
invasive plant in the Polygonaceae family that is widely regarded as a
weed. Other common names for it include fleeceflower, huzhang, Hancock's curse, Japanese bamboo, and Mexican bamboo. Other scientific names for it include
Fallopia japonica and
Reynoutria japonica. This
plant is a large, herbaceous
perennial with hollow, noded stems that give it the appearance of
bamboo, though it is not related. A colonizer of riparian
ecosystems, roadsides and waste places, it can be found in 40 out 50 of the
U.S. states, and 6
Canadian provinces. It is a frequent invader in
Europe and the
U.K., where it has been illegal to spread Japanese knotweed in
England since the 1980s. Native to
Asia, Japanese knotweed was first introduced to Europe and the US in the
19th century.
Closely related species include "Giant knotweed" (Polygonum sachalinense) and "Russian vine" (Polygonum aubertii).
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