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Article: Czeching the spread of unwanted plants. (research on the proliferation of the imported plant Indian balsam on the Czech Republic's riverbanks)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- November 11, 1995
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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CONSERVATIONISTS have spent years opposing the "aggressive management" of river banks (ie, mowing them). Not without reason: a tangled bank is a good wildlife habitat. But sometimes you just cannot win. Petr Pysek, of the University of Agriculture in Prague, and Karel Prach, of the University of South Bohemia in Kes Budejovice, have shown that too little management can be as bad as too much. Through lack of it, an alien invader is disturbing the riparian tranquillity of their new country.
Indian balsam is a showy plant, two metres tall, with pink flowers, features that brought it to the attention of European gardeners in the 19th century. As is the ...