Leader: No need for complete wipeout of this alien invader

IT SOUNDS like the plague of Scotland's forests, a deadly, alien, invasive species that suffocates habitats and shelters tree-killing species. However noxious you may feel the woodland rhododendron to be, the Forestry Commission has a denunciation far worse.

Now it has set itself an ambitious plan to free the national forest estate of them, a task that it says may take 15 years - and a 15 million budget.

There is no doubt the plant, allowed to grow wild and untrammelled, will devour almost everything before it. It grows fast once established and is lethal to many other plant species.

Residential gardeners, however, may baulk at the admonition of Richard Thompson, the Forestry Commission's native woodland ecologist, that "everyone needs to do their bit and report any rhododendron they see to the environment lead in their district. Don't just walk past it and ignore it - because if you do, you soon won't be able to move for the stuff!"

Thousands of Scottish gardeners might take objection to seeing their privacy-screening rhododendron ripped out after sightings by concerned citizens. Kept under control, they can be an asset; their generous, stunning flowers a refreshing counter to the more feeble offerings from garden centres. And across Scotland, imaginative landowners have cultivated rhododendron gardens and walks that draw thousands of visitors.

If all alien species were to be removed, there would be little biodiversity left to defend. The commission should cull with care.