Abstract
IN tropical waters, the water hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes, Solms., a native of South America, a freely floating or loosely attached water plant supported by its curious buoyant bladder-like petioles, very readily becomes a serious pest, blocking waterways to navigation and converting fertile land near the waterways into stagnant swamps. F. P. Jepson, controller of plant pests, Department of Agriculture, Ceylon, has directed attention to the spread of this pest (Trop. Agric., 81, Dec. 1933). Introduced into Ceylon in 1905, probably as an ornamental plant, it has spread until in 1933 it ranges over some thousands of acres of water, paddy and swamp. At present, the infested areas lie within the inhabited zones, but Mr. Jepson contemplates with dismay the possible results of its finding its way to the vast uninhabited regions traversed by some of the larger rivers. Chemical methods of extinction are still being experimented with, but until now removal by hand has been most effective, the weed being then piled up and burnt. The chief difficulty in the control of the pest has been the apathy of the landowners and others responsible for the irrigation dams and water tanks. For this reason, Mr. Jepson's account is written in an educational and propagandist spirit, and makes clear the necessity for co-operation between private individual and Government if the water hyacinth is to be brought under control.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Spread of the Water Hyacinth. Nature 134, 623 (1934). https://doi.org/10.1038/134623b0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/134623b0