Fears over livestock poisoning have prompted farming leaders in Norfolk to demand action from the county council to remove a large bloom of ragwort from the roadside.

The yellow-flowered plant is poisonous to animals, and defined as an 'injurious weed' in government legislation.

Farmers have raised concern over the large quantities of ragwort on roadside verges, central reservations and other council-owned land this summer, particularly with the prospect of seeds being blown into neighbouring fields where animals could be grazing.

John Newton, Norfolk county adviser for the National Farmers' Union (NFU), wrote to the county's highways department saying: 'As you may be aware, the weed is poisonous to animals, therefore the elimination of ragwort from farmers' land is critical. The removal is costly and time-consuming, but unless the effort is mirrored by other parties affected, the effort is futile. It is essential that the elimination is carried out by either spraying the weed to kill it, or by removing the plants, including the roots, for transport away from the site and burning.

'We recognise that funding cuts have reduced your resources, leading to a reduction in verge cutting, but action is vital now to prevent greater problems in the future.'

Matt Worden, maintenance projects manager in Norfolk County Council's highways and transport department, said: 'Norfolk County Council takes the issue of ragwort, and other injurious and notifiable weeds, very seriously and accordingly have a procedure in place which is based on the code of practice issued by Defra.

'We have a schedule of areas of concern and carry out annual treatment based on advice from a specialist company. However, as you probably know, treatment will have limited affect if the adjacent landowner does not take similar appropriate action. Our experience is that when we have worked together with landowners treatment has been generally successful, however treatment of just the narrow highway verge is rarely effective.

'We will continue to work with landowners to identify high and medium risk sites and take action in accordance with our procedures.'

Ragwort risks

Common ragwort is specified as 'injurious' in the Weeds Act 1959. It flowers from late June to early autumn when the characteristic yellow flower heads usually extend between 30-100cm in height. Ragwort occurs in neglected grass fields, on uncropped ground and sand dunes. It prefers light soils of low fertility, particularly in over or under-grazed pasture.

Government guidance says ragwort is a potential killer, and poisonous to livestock. Eating ragwort can lead to liver damage which cannot be treated. Cattle and horses are particularly susceptible to poisoning by common ragwort but sheep are also susceptible.

The palatability of the weed increases when plants are conserved in hay or silage or treated with herbicide. Dried and dying ragwort is also dangerous because it is more palatable to livestock than the living plant. It is therefore important to ensure ragwort plants are removed before animals are allowed to graze.

Have you experienced a problem with ragwort poisoning? Contact chris.hill@archant.co.uk.