Another round of guess this plant!

[kennett]

Another round, no prizes other than pride I'm afraid. Growing in a ditch bottom, around 8ft tall and an almost square stem

[JDog]

It looks like Himalayan balsam. If it is you ought to pull out all you can see before the seed pods ripen and the seeds spread.

[hodge911]

51 minutes ago, JDog said:

It looks like Himalayan balsam. If it is you ought to pull out all you can see before the seed pods ripen and the seeds spread.

is that the stuff which has the seed pods that explode when touched ?

the waste land near where I used to work has something like it on it and gets more every year 

[kennett]

56 minutes ago, JDog said:

It looks like Himalayan balsam. If it is you ought to pull out all you can see before the seed pods ripen and the seeds spread.

That's what I thought at first, but it isn't quite right. The stem has a very pronounced rib that runs down 4 sides and the seed pods never develop like HB. It grows in the same spot every year but never spreads or gets any denser

[JDog]

2 minutes ago, hodge911 said:

is that the stuff which has the seed pods that explode when touched ?

the waste land near where I used to work has something like it on it and gets more every year 

Yes that's the plant. Once the seeds have been left to explode once the plant becomes very invasive.

However my initial ID causes me some doubt and I wouldn't know for sure until I could see the flowers. There is another tall plant that grows in water and margins which is similar but I cannot remember the name of it.

1 minute ago, kennett said:

That's what I thought at first, but it isn't quite right. The stem has a very pronounced rib that runs down 4 sides and the seed pods never develop like HB. It grows in the same spot every year but never spreads or gets any denser

See my further post below sent at the same time as yours.

[Penelope]

Yes that's the plant. Once the seeds have been left to explode once the plant becomes very invasive.

However my initial ID causes me some doubt and I wouldn't know for sure until I could see the flowers. There is another tall plant that grows in water and margins which is similar but I cannot remember the name of it.

 

Rose Bay Willow Herb?

[grrclark]

It looks a bit like water figwart (i think), but I didn’t think that was such a tall plant.

[JDog]

Well done. Water Figwort it is.

[kennett]

1 hour ago, grrclark said:

It looks a bit like water figwart (i think), but I didn’t think that was such a tall plant.

Well done that man, the PW knowledge never fails to impress. Your right about the height though, google says up to 1m but this must be some sort of super figwort

[grrclark]

1 hour ago, kennett said:

Well done that man, the PW knowledge never fails to impress. Your right about the height though, google says up to 1m but this must be some sort of super figwort

 

2 hours ago, JDog said:

Well done. Water Figwort it is.

Apparently no knowledge of the correct spelling however..... *embarrassed face*