Saturday Morning host James Martin has been urged to “be careful” by his fans following concerns over a segment on today’s show (April 29).
Earlier today, the TV chef appeared alongside flavours expert Alyssa Vasey. As James prepared a lamb dish, the pair engaged in a conversation about three-cornered leeks, also known as allium triquetrum.
Saturday Morning fans share concerns for James Martin
Speaking about the plant, Alyssa said: “If you put this in your garden it will just take over an area. It will take over an embankment. What happens is, the longer that this gets, it falls over so it blocks out the sunlight to all the other plants. So that’s its survival mechanism.”
She continued: “If you can put some barriers on the floor – it’s one of those things that you need to contain because it will just grow absolutely crazy.” James then added that he was going to grow it, to which Alyssa replied: “I’ll bring you some down next time.”
Alyssa then gave advice on how to grow it and said: “Get an embankment. You want some tree cover. You need quite well mulchy – it likes a lot of leaf mulch. Punt it in that, put an embankment, make sure it’s going to keep damp. It needs to have light coming through. Once you’ve got that sorted, if you don’t want it to spread, put something in the ground to barrier it in.”
James Martin urged to ‘be careful’ by fans
Taking to Twitter, some fans pointed out that it’s an offence to plant or grow allium triquetrum in the wild in some parts of the UK.
One person said: “@sat_jamesmartin Slightly concerned to hear allium triquetrum, three-cornered leek, being promoted on this morning’s show. This plant is a non-native invasive plant which is on Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.”
They added: “If you introduce it to your garden, not only will it take over, there is a very good chance it will escape into the wild.”
Another user said: “@sat_jamesmartin please be careful. Is Allium Triquetrum illegal in the UK? It is listed under Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 with respect to England, Wales and Scotland. As such it is an offence to plant or otherwise cause this species to grow in the wild.”
ITV declined to comment.
Is it an offence to grow it in the UK?
According to a number or horticultural websites, it is an offence to plant or cause it to grow in the wild in some parts of the UK.
NatureSpot.org.uk states: “It is listed under Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 with respect to England, Wales and Scotland. As such it is an offence to plant or otherwise cause this species to grow in the wild.”
It isn’t an offence to simply have it on your land, however, but breaching the guidelines surrounding the self-seeding invasive plant can result in possible fines.
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