"Janet Galpin and Oliver Patterson" wrote in
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There is another similar Polygonum weed called Polygonum amphibium or
amphibious bistort. I have it in several places in my garden and find it
impossible to get rid of. The roots go down very deep and you never get
to the end of them. It seems to grow where land is or has been damp,
e.g. fens, but I'm not sure how widespread it is.
It's my pet hate and yet I've never come across anyone else who is
troubled by it.

However, I think yours probably is redshank rather than amphibious
bistort (which also grows in ponds), but you could see how far down your
roots go.

Ordinary bistort is passably good eating. Redshank isn't, well, I suppose
it's maybe edible, but it's bland as hell and utterly pointless eating.
Pretty, though. Is amphibious bistort edible? I'll look it up later, see if
I can find it in any of my wild food books.