VOLUNTEERS are needed for a ‘blitz on balsam’ at the Castle Meadows in Abergavenny.

Keep Wales Tidy in collaboration with Victoria Street Neighbourhood Watch and Monmouthshire council’s countryside section will again be running sessions to tackle the invasive alien plant Himalayan balsam.

It is spreading rapidly through the countryside, but it is possible to control it simply by pulling up the annual plants before they seed.

The sessions, to which volunteers can just turn up, are:

● Tuesday, May 22, at 10am and 2pm.

● Wednesday, May 23, at 10am and 2pm.

● Saturday, June 9, at 10am.

● Tuesday, June 12, at 10am and 2pm.

● Wednesday, June 13, at 10am and 2pm.

Volunteers should wear strong shoes with grip, gardening gloves, plus long trousers and long sleeves as protection from nettles.