Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8

Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.

John Savard

On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:50:22 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
>
> Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
>
> John Savard

At least kudzu isn't poisonous to touch.

Apparently the same as the 'Giant Hogweed' threatening
western Europe:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum

pt

On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 10:53:11 AM UTC-4, pete...@gmail.com wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:50:22 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> > Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
> >
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
> >
> > Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
> >
> > John Savard
> At least kudzu isn't poisonous to touch.
>
> Apparently the same as the 'Giant Hogweed' threatening
> western Europe:
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum
>

Indeed - Peter Gabriel foresaw this nefarious threat when he
penned the lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed"[1],
found on the 1971Genesis album Nursery Cryme.

Tony
[1] Initial lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed":
"Turn and run!
Nothing can stop them
Around every river and canal their power is growing
Stamp them out!
We must destroy them
They infiltrate each city with their thick dark warning odour
They are invincible
They seem immune to all our herbicidal battering

Long ago in the Russian hills
A Victorian explorer found
The regal Hogweed by a marsh
He captured it and brought it home

Botanical creature stirs! Seeking revenge
Royal beast did not forget
He came home to London
And made a present of the Hogweed
To the Royal Gardens at Kew ..."

<it's an easy search to find the rest>

On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 12:33:43 PM UTC-4, Tony Nance wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 10:53:11 AM UTC-4, pete...@gmail.com wrote:
> > On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:50:22 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> > > Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
> > >
> > > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
> > >
> > > Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
> > >
> > > John Savard
> > At least kudzu isn't poisonous to touch.
> >
> > Apparently the same as the 'Giant Hogweed' threatening
> > western Europe:
> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum
> >
> Indeed - Peter Gabriel foresaw this nefarious threat when he
> penned the lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed"[1],
> found on the 1971Genesis album Nursery Cryme.
>
> Tony
> [1] Initial lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed":
> "Turn and run!
> Nothing can stop them
> Around every river and canal their power is growing
> Stamp them out!
> We must destroy them
> They infiltrate each city with their thick dark warning odour
> They are invincible
> They seem immune to all our herbicidal battering
>
> Long ago in the Russian hills
> A Victorian explorer found
> The regal Hogweed by a marsh
> He captured it and brought it home
>
> Botanical creature stirs! Seeking revenge
> Royal beast did not forget
> He came home to London
> And made a present of the Hogweed
> To the Royal Gardens at Kew ..."
>
> <it's an easy search to find the rest>

Is that the same giant hogweed that is taking over Ontario? Can we blame Putin or Biden?

On Fri, 04 Aug 2023 17:54:57 -0700, John Halpenny wrote:

> On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 12:33:43 PM UTC-4, Tony Nance wrote:
>> On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 10:53:11 AM UTC-4, pete...@gmail.com
>> wrote:
>> > On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:50:22 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
>> > > Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
>> > >
>> > > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
>> > >
>> > > Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
>> > >
>> > > John Savard
>> > At least kudzu isn't poisonous to touch.
>> >
>> > Apparently the same as the 'Giant Hogweed' threatening western
>> > Europe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum
>> >
>> Indeed - Peter Gabriel foresaw this nefarious threat when he penned the
>> lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed"[1],
>> found on the 1971Genesis album Nursery Cryme.
>>
>> Tony [1] Initial lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed":
>> "Turn and run!
>> Nothing can stop them Around every river and canal their power is
>> growing Stamp them out!
>> We must destroy them They infiltrate each city with their thick dark
>> warning odour They are invincible They seem immune to all our
>> herbicidal battering
>>
>> Long ago in the Russian hills A Victorian explorer found The regal
>> Hogweed by a marsh He captured it and brought it home
>>
>> Botanical creature stirs! Seeking revenge Royal beast did not forget He
>> came home to London And made a present of the Hogweed To the Royal
>> Gardens at Kew ..."
>>
>> <it's an easy search to find the rest>
>
> Is that the same giant hogweed that is taking over Ontario? Can we
> blame Putin or Biden?

It turns out that the history of newspaper coverage of this
purported menace is very peculiar. I find the first reference
in 1923 -- 100 years ago...hmm. The first significant reporting
about the plant, though, wasn't until 1970. It was a burst of
articles in both Britain and the U.S. Peter Gabriel's song came
the next year...Susequently, coverage spiked in 2002, 2010 and
2018. Note that the Wikipedia article has exactly one sentence
about it in Russia.

On Friday, August 4, 2023 at 8:55:00 PM UTC-4, John Halpenny wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 12:33:43 PM UTC-4, Tony Nance wrote:
> > On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 10:53:11 AM UTC-4, pete...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > On Tuesday, August 1, 2023 at 8:50:22 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> > > > Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
> > > >
> > > > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
> > > >
> > > > Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
> > > >
> > > > John Savard
> > > At least kudzu isn't poisonous to touch.
> > >
> > > Apparently the same as the 'Giant Hogweed' threatening
> > > western Europe:
> > > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum
> > >
> > Indeed - Peter Gabriel foresaw this nefarious threat when he
> > penned the lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed"[1],
> > found on the 1971Genesis album Nursery Cryme.
> >
> > Tony
> > [1] Initial lyrics to "The Return of the Giant Hogweed":
> > "Turn and run!
> > Nothing can stop them
> > Around every river and canal their power is growing
> > Stamp them out!
> > We must destroy them
> > They infiltrate each city with their thick dark warning odour
> > They are invincible
> > They seem immune to all our herbicidal battering
> >
> > Long ago in the Russian hills
> > A Victorian explorer found
> > The regal Hogweed by a marsh
> > He captured it and brought it home
> >
> > Botanical creature stirs! Seeking revenge
> > Royal beast did not forget
> > He came home to London
> > And made a present of the Hogweed
> > To the Royal Gardens at Kew ..."
> >
> > <it's an easy search to find the rest>
>
> Is that the same giant hogweed that is taking over Ontario?
>

It is!

> Can we blame Putin or Biden?

We can! And not just those two - all other political figures
with 5-letter last names.

Tony, who has never been, and does not aspire to be,
a political figure

On Saturday, August 5, 2023 at 8:32:55 AM UTC-6, Tony Nance wrote:
> On Friday, August 4, 2023 at 8:55:00 PM UTC-4, John Halpenny wrote:

> > Can we blame Putin or Biden?

> We can! And not just those two - all other political figures
> with 5-letter last names.

I'm gratified to hear that both Trudeau and Ford are exonerated, then,
when it comes to the giant hogweed taking over Ontario. Canadian
victimhood is unsullied!

John Savard

In article <8a3d8c32-0fa4-4413-9150-405d8d45b7e3n@googlegroups.com>,
Quadibloc <jsavard@ecn.ab.ca> wrote:
>Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
>
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
>
>Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.

Just from the subject header, my immediate thought was to complete
the sentence .... "the Pottsylvania Creeper."

--
Mike Van Pelt | "I don't advise it unless you're nuts."
mvp at calweb.com | -- Ray Wilkinson, after riding out Hurricane
KE6BVH | Ike on Surfside Beach in Galveston

On Tuesday, August 8, 2023 at 4:02:15 PM UTC-4, Mike Van Pelt wrote:
> In article <8a3d8c32-0fa4-4413...@googlegroups.com>,
> Quadibloc <jsa...@ecn.ab.ca> wrote:
> >Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
> >
> >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
> >
> >Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
> Just from the subject header, my immediate thought was to complete
> the sentence .... "the Pottsylvania Creeper."
>
> --

Aha!

https://rockyandbullwinkle.fandom.com/wiki/Pottsylvania_Creeper

In the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US we have "Virginia Creeper."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenocissus_quinquefolia

It's everywhere. It overgrows power and phone lines, and the utilities
and the towns have to trim it back.

[quote]

Virginia creeper will grow up any tree and most shrubs.
This species will slowly kill the host on which it is growing,
because it prevents the host from receiving an adequate
amount of sunlight. It can also crowd or choke other plants.

[/quote] - https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/factsheet/pdf/fs_paqu2.pdf

Untrimmed creeper spreads from a utility line, infests a tree, leaving it too
weak to stand up to a strong wind. Tree falls and takes out the phone
and power lines. Not a good cycle.

Beware the Creeper!

https://www.comics.org/issue/21708/

--
Kevin R

On Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 4:54:12 PM UTC-4, Kevrob wrote:

>
> [quote]
>
> Virginia creeper will grow up any tree and most shrubs.
> This species will slowly kill the host on which it is growing,
> because it prevents the host from receiving an adequate
> amount of sunlight. It can also crowd or choke other plants.
>
> [/quote] - actually from

https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/plantguide/doc/pg_paqu2.docx

--
Kevin R

On Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 5:25:57 PM UTC-4, Kevrob wrote:
> On Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 4:54:12 PM UTC-4, Kevrob wrote:
>
> >
> > [quote]
> >
> > Virginia creeper will grow up any tree and most shrubs.
> > This species will slowly kill the host on which it is growing,
> > because it prevents the host from receiving an adequate
> > amount of sunlight. It can also crowd or choke other plants.
> >
> > [/quote] - actually from
>
> https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/plantguide/doc/pg_paqu2.docx
>

Ugh - we have Virginia creeper in the tree line that forms the northern
boundary of our property. It's really hard to get rid of. And to boot, I'm
one of those unlucky goobers whose skin gets irritated by it, too.
(Minor rash, kind of a poison ivy thing, but not as virulent.)

Tony

On Thu, 10 Aug 2023 13:54:08 -0700 (PDT), Kevrob <kevrob@my-deja.com>
wrote:

>On Tuesday, August 8, 2023 at 4:02:15?PM UTC-4, Mike Van Pelt wrote:
>> In article <8a3d8c32-0fa4-4413...@googlegroups.com>,
>> Quadibloc <jsa...@ecn.ab.ca> wrote:
>> >Apparently there's a monster devouring Russia...
>> >
>> >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5NxuEoXHn8
>> >
>> >Sosnowsky's Hogweed. But it's from the Caucasus, not Poland.
>> Just from the subject header, my immediate thought was to complete
>> the sentence .... "the Pottsylvania Creeper."
>>
>> --
>
>Aha!
>
>https://rockyandbullwinkle.fandom.com/wiki/Pottsylvania_Creeper
>
>In the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US we have "Virginia Creeper."
>
>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenocissus_quinquefolia
>
>It's everywhere. It overgrows power and phone lines, and the utilities
>and the towns have to trim it back.
>
>[quote]
>
>Virginia creeper will grow up any tree and most shrubs.
>This species will slowly kill the host on which it is growing,
>because it prevents the host from receiving an adequate
>amount of sunlight. It can also crowd or choke other plants.
>
>[/quote] - https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/factsheet/pdf/fs_paqu2.pdf
>
>Untrimmed creeper spreads from a utility line, infests a tree, leaving it too
>weak to stand up to a strong wind. Tree falls and takes out the phone
>and power lines. Not a good cycle.

And, if I read the post you gave below correctly, it is /native/ not
invasive.

But it isn't a patch on the Pottsylvania Creeper. Or the Man-Eater of
Surrey Green, for that matter.

>Beware the Creeper!
>
>https://www.comics.org/issue/21708/
--
"Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"

On Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 10:25:57 PM UTC+1, Kevrob wrote:
> On Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 4:54:12 PM UTC-4, Kevrob wrote:
>
> >
> > [quote]
> >
> > Virginia creeper will grow up any tree and most shrubs.
> > This species will slowly kill the host on which it is growing,
> > because it prevents the host from receiving an adequate
> > amount of sunlight. It can also crowd or choke other plants.
> >
> > [/quote] - actually from
>
> https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/plantguide/doc/pg_paqu2.docx
>
> --
> Kevin R
I have virginia creeper on my garage wall - it was there when I bough the house and I have never found a compelling reason to remove it. In this climate it is only moderately invasive, but on the other hand it only makes a half-hearted attempt at turning bright red in the autumn before the leaves fall off. I presume that in a climate less moderated and dampened by the sea it would be more spectacular.