If you were to think of a common garden weed, would you think of murder? Suicide? What about colonialism, or capitalism? Surprisingly, the seemingly simple Japanese Knotweed is something intrinsically connected to all of these. Japanese Knotweed has a few names, such as fallopia japonica, itadori, and donkey rhubarb. Originally from Japan, this weed has become an unexpected and destructive force, ruining lives, going so far as to push people to murder. But what does this have to do with economics, history, politics? Because of European colonialism, Japanese knotweed has become an incredibly detrimental invasive species, creating a great economic incentive to find solutions, effectively commodifying this weed. This is all well and good, just a side effect of capitalism, right? There cannot be gains without some losses? Well, the following tile will explain just how pervasive and root-like capitalism can be, in a similar fashion to Japanese Knotweed.

The history of colonialism has led to Japanese Knotweed being an incredibly pervasive, money-draining, fury-inducing problem. The man who went to Japan was referred to as Dr. Philipp Franz von Siebold. Siebold was a German scientist that was one of the few lucky Europeans allowed to enter Japan in the year 1823, through which he stayed for eight years. For some global perspective, America was in its first plains war with the Arikara Native Americans in South Dakota, while Great Britain was fighting their first Burmese War. As you can tell, this is when countries were still developing and international travel was very uncommon unless migrating for a better life, or for the purpose of colonization. During the colonial through imperial time periods, Japan was a strict isolationist country, and “in 1823, Siebold was allowed onto the tiny man-made island of Dejima in Nagasaki harbor in Japan. At this time, the ruling class in Japan was extremely isolationist, and Dejima was the only place where foreigners, mostly Dutch, were permitted” (lindahall.org). Clearly, this was a rare opportunity for a botanist and doctor, with thousands of new plants and flowers to be discovered, and Western medicine to be spread. While von Siebold most likely did not go to Japan to colonize or promote his political values, he still went with the history of colonialism and imperialism that were a part of his culture.

Something to consider is how race was taught in medical school during the 1800s, which means that there is undoubtedly intrinsic and deep-set views of racism, xenophobia, and biases in his education and belief system. Upon discovering Japanese Knotweed, von Siebold was incredibly impressed. In the Slate article about the history and effects of Japanese knotweed, author Henry Grabar argues “Japanese knotweed has come a long way since Philipp Franz von Siebold..., brought it (Japanese Knotweed) to the Utrecht plant fair in the Netherlands in the 1840s. The gold-medal shrub was prized for its “gracious flowers” and advertised as ornament, medicine, wind shelter, soil retainer, dune stabilizer, cattle feed, and insect pollinator, that grew with ‘great vigor’” (Grabar). Obviously, Phillip Franz von Siebold had no idea what bringing Japanese Knotweed to Europe would result in almost 200 years later. At the time, the benefits were clear, and the flower was aesthetically pleasing for rich homeowners throughout Europe. It eventually turned into a status symbol throughout Europe, due to very few people seeing anything remotely similar to Japanese Knotweed. It was also seen as a symbol of wealth because it meant that you could afford decorative things such as plants and flowers at the end of the Industrial Revolution, a time of poverty, human rights abuses, and large income inequality especially in Great Britain. However, this is the common trend of colonialism and imperialism. People who were directly involved with it assumed what they were doing was fair and beneficial, without even the slightest hesitation. No thought into the effects, long term or short, in local and global communities. So, what happened when it made its way over to Europe?

The theft of these resources almost 200 years ago has led to the spread of Knotweed, the destruction of local ecosystems, and, ultimately, contributions to global climate change. Upon being introduced to Europe, the true nature of Japanese Knotweed was revealed. This weed is nearly indestructible. It has roots that go meters wide and deep and costs thousands of dollars to kill, over multiple time periods, because it will come back. This graphic provided by a local business in England, which specializes in knotweed removal, shows how widespread and deeprooted Japanese knotweed becomes. It goes so far as to breaking through floorboards and coming through the walls. If you pull the stems out, they grow back within days.

Because Japanese Knotweed takes over everything in its domain, it destroys local flora, which then affects the local fauna. Lots of local species have been pushed to the brink of extinction, due to the fact the knotweed both kills its surroundings as well as blocks out the sunlight due to its dense nature. This leads to the depletion of the fertility of the soil, which prevents anything else from growing there and ultimately deterring local animals from the area. The destruction of these local environments has contributed greatly to the loss of biodiversity of local flora and fauna. The destruction of ecosystems has inherently become worse, which again, has been caused by colonialism and capitalism, even if it was done so unintentionally. Ashley Dawson, the author of “Extinction: A Radical History,” was interviewed by Climate and Capitalism. Here, he grimly highlights “at some point, capitalism will take the entire planet past a point of ecological destruction from which there will be no return, at least on any time scale that is meaningful for human beings” (Dawson). You may be doubting the impact that one little weed has on a global scale, but consider this. This is one of over 4000 species that is considered invasive, including animals. Spread throughout the entire world, given as much time to disseminate and develop as Japanese Knotweed has had, it is clear that invasive species are taking over at an alarming rate. What does this mean for everyday people? Is it really that difficult to deal with?

The first thing worth mentioning is the severe economic toll Japanese Knotweed has upon homeowners. While the economic toll is incredibly difficult for owners of property that have been infested, the removal companies created out of it have been thriving, highlighting the weed’s integration into the capitalist market. It has become a great business opportunity for some, due to the great expense required to truly deal with Japanese knotweed, and how time-consuming the process is. Because of its inability to be fully removed, and how tenacious of a weed it is, the value of the property depreciates dangerously, leaving owners with infested property desperate to sell. It causes such high depreciation that the UK government requires Knotweed inspections before selling homes or property to people.

This is directly connected to the two fatal instances in England, one being a suicide, the other a murder-suicide. A BBC article titled, “Kenneth McRae Killed Wife Jane and then Himself over Knotweed Fears”, summarizes that due to the inevitable economic burden Japanese Knotweed would impose on himself and his wife, he had to kill the two of them. A video by BBC One Show shares information about the incredible difficulties Japanese knotweed has given one family in the UK. While it may seem a bit overdramatic of a reaction to a weed, it not only damages the value but the property itself. It can require thousands of dollars not only for removal, but to actually repair damages done to the houses themselves. No true, economical, effective solution has been found.

Japanese Knotweed is everywhere, and there is seemingly nothing that can permanently tame it. According to Japanese Knotweed Solutions, a company that specializes in Knotweed removal, “the UK government estimates it would cost around £2-2.5 billion to completely get rid of the weed across the country” (jksl.com). The UK has a budget of £772 billion pounds per year, meaning knotweed removal would cost a whopping 19.3% of that budget. It is almost certainly impossible to imagine how to reallocate that many funds for something that does not affect most individuals in the country, especially in today’s political climate. According to multiple removal sites, the average cost starts around £7000, which poses another large problem. Most people who are facing knotweed troubles, cannot afford to constantly pay these large sums, which does not even cover the damage done to the property itself. If this isn’t the perfect example of capitalism and its destruction, I’m not sure what would be.

The materials previously mentioned provide a jarring reality of the results of capitalism and colonialism. Just like Japanese knotweed, its roots have continuously expanded everywhere and affected everyone, and will only continue to grow. However, it is important to note that capitalism would not be without the history of colonialism. This belief of being able to go anywhere, claim this place, the people, the resources as your property, is a direct factor in what capitalism has come to be in modern times. The idea of all for one and one for all is built into the foundation of these systems. Without the history of colonialism, it is almost certain that capitalism would not be the uncontained monster is has morphed into. The research required for this issue is expensive, nonurgent, and most cannot conceptualize a solution in the near future. On top of this, governments will most likely prioritize many things before they even consider Japanese Knotweed as an issue worth discussing, let alone funding. This is unfortunate, considering the global impact this invasive species has and will continue to have, as it spreads to more and more places, killing everything in its path. Not only was the economic information critical, but the environmental, scientific, historical, and political information is also relevant to fully paint even a third of the complexity of this topic. This is just the tip of the iceberg, a way to make you, the reader, think critically about the delicate and intricate relationships between everything in the natural world, and the role economic systems, specifically capitalism, has within these relationships. This topic ultimately shows the connection between the government, colonialism, capitalism, the natural world, and how everything one does in each realm affects every other aspect in unpredictable ways.

This paper has focused on studying the history of Japanese knotweed and how it arrived in Europe, its ecological damage as an invasive species and the global impact, the individual economic impact it has on people throughout the world, and in governments. With this new information, it is clear that there is a direct relationship between this weed, its colonialist roots in Europe, and how it has become not only relevant but powerful today through capitalism. While the future may seem bleak for those dealing with the infuriating Japanese Knotweed, hopefully, more awareness and research can be done to help the people suffering, and educate people globally about how powerful capitalism and invasive species are.