Hogg

In the 1860s, Thomas Hogg sent Japanese knotweed to his brothers New York nursery; within decades, the ornamental had become a serious pest

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Introduced to North America in the 1860s, Japanese knotweed was once admired for its appearance and practical uses. Its rapid growth later made it a persistent nuisance. The plant spreads through underground rhizomes and tiny stem fragments, forming dense stands that can shade out other vegetation. (Wikimedia Commons)

In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Thomas Hogg U.S. marshal to Japan, and over the following years, Hogg sent plants home to his brother James, who ran a nursery in the Yorkville section of Manhattan. One of them was Japanese knotweed. A 2017 paper in the Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society by Peter Del … Read more