An Aberdeenshire mum has raised concerns children could be harmed by a poisonous weed that has spread onto a path that leads to a school.
Claire McPherson, from Whiteford, Pitcaple, noticed giant hogweed had been sprouting onto road sides in the local area, including the walkway that leads to her five-year-old son’s school at Logie Durno.
The tall and white-flowering giant hogweed can grow close to 20ft tall and contains a highly poisonous liquid which can cause severe burns and blistering and potentially lead to Lime’s Disease.
The council’s landscaping team has now visited the area and is in the process of tackling the weed.
But Mrs McPherson – who also has a two-year-old son named Jake – believes the problem should have been dealt with before now.
She said: “I’ve noticed it growing by the local burn and also spreading onto streets and pavements.
“A few weeks ago I called the council after it started growing onto a car park and they came out and dealt with it.
“But now it’s on the way up to the school and it’s only going to be a matter of time before someone gets hurt.
“It’s just laziness that they have left it to get like this – I think it’s disgusting.
“If anyone came here to look they would see it’s growing everywhere. It’s not my job to keep an eye out for hogweed.”
The toxic weed was first brought to Britain from central Asia at the end of the 19th century as an ornamental plant, but
has since become an invasive species.
Now, it is mostly found growing alongside footpaths and riverbanks, but can also be spotted in parks and cemeteries.
Last night, Aberdeenshire Council said it was aware of the problem and had already sent teams out to kill the weed.
A spokeswoman said: “Landscaping services were only made aware of this today and have now sprayed the weeds and
removed the flowering pods.”