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As a preliminary assessment, the Dirty Lads began by examining the site affected by the species most heavily. As mentioned before, this area of greatest population density was along the banks, near the bridge leading to the Rugby Pitch. This area was photographed, and the Dirty Lads returned to the office in order to plan out a course of action that would include how to isolate and remove the plant from the area. Many methods were considered, some involving more natural treatments and some involving more chemical treatments. The largest challenge to combating the plant is its strong network of rhizomes. Although many people may use rhizome and roots interchangeably, rhizomes are actually much thicker and allow the plant to absorb more nutrients. This further reinforced the idea that Japanese Knotweed was a difficult invasive species to combat. It was around this time that the Dirty Lads realized that action would need to be taken in order to make the dangers of knotweed public knowledge. Using the power of social media, the Dirty Lads created a Facebook and Twitter account that would serve as a means of broadcasting a message. Attempts would be made via these social media accounts to connect with local politicians for community outreach and to increase community awareness.
As part of the community outreach effort, the Dirty Lads were called on to create a demonstrable model that would show the effects of knotweed. The clearest solution would be to use two fish tanks in order to allow full view of how the Japanese Knotweed develops differently compared to regular plants in a controlled environment. One of the considerations made was whether or not the size of the tank mattered but after much deliberation, it was settled that the tank size was relatively unimportant; what mattered most was that the roots were visible in the apparatus. The plants would be exposed to sunlight and watered regularly, but would remain indoors until the presentation. The difficulties of being able to grow a plant without adequate conditions was considered, but the Dirty Lads, based on many years exposed to the wild[BB1] , made the decision that the plant would likely be able to grow in non-ideal conditions. [BB1]Three of the four Dirty Lads are Eagle Scouts and know how to deal with wild plants thusly.
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the Dirty LadsThe group was first formed in late August of 2018 and since then, founded Shogun Knot Swat Oct. 2018 at Norwich University. The members consist of Brian Betz, Alonzo Hilario, Vincent Nguyen and Pat Ryan. ArchivesCategories |