"Stewart Robert Hinsley" wrote
in message ...
In article ,

writes
I'm madly sowing seeds as usual at this time of the year
and trying to
use some I had left over from the HPS orders. I was
unable to find
mention of this plant in any of my books but on the
Internet I came
across a description and found that it is described as a
Class A
noxious weed in some American states. If this is the case
why on earth
would anyone go to the trouble of collecting the seeds
and sending
them to the HPS to be laboriously packed a few at a time
in little
packets? I was hoping I would find that it is an
interesting grass
type plant. Is anyone familiar with it? Diana

Whether a plant becomes a pest or not depends not only on
the plant, but
on the environment. A decorative plant may in some
environments escape
from cultivation and play havoc with the ecology or the
economy. For
example, Japanese Knotweed, Giant Hogweed, Himalayan
Balsam and
_Rhododendron ponticum_ were all introduced to this
country as
ornamental plants; they are all now considered weeds. It's
quite
possible that a plant is a desirable horticultural object
in one country
and a noxious weed in another.

But you must admit that Himalayan Balsam is a rather
handsome weed. {:-))

Franz