Weeds

Mother of Millions

The biggest problem wth these weeds is they will grow from leaf sections and being succulent can withstand long dry spells. The only really effective way of dealing with them is to lay down tarps so that all the leaflets that fall off are caught, pull them out and bag them. Hand pull by wrapping your hand around the base of the stem and pulling. Usually they come out easily. (From the Redland Shire Bushcare Newsletter - Beating Round the Bush)

Mile-a-Minute

This is one of the Morning Glory vines that have large showy trumpet like flowers that are either mauve or white. The leaves are maple like with five to seven pointed leaves, and are smaller than the flowers. It has tuberous roots. Mile-a-Minute (Ipomea cairica) is a vigorous climber that will smother tall trees. It is prevalent in wet areas and occurs along creeks, swamps, and sheltered littoral zones where the vegetation has been disturbed.

Control - This vine is very difficult to control without the use of herbicide, as it will reshoot from pieces of root left behind. It is a very rapid grower and manual weeding alone can be quickly undone. Cut the stems close to the ground and immediately apply herbicide to the cut surfaces.

Mile-a-Minute spreads from seeds and garden waste being dumped or washed into bushland areas. Your assistance in community education will help to control this beautiful but invasive bushland weed.

(From the Redland Shire Bushcare Newsletter - Beating Round the Bush)

Asparagus Fern

Though now classed among our more serious environmental weeds, the hardy Asparagus Fern (Protasparagus densiflorus) remains popular in gardening circles. Seemingly indestructible even in forgotten hanging baskets the 'maintenance free' Asparagus Fern (actually not a fern at all) seems made to order for the Botanically Challenged!

Introduced into Australia from Southern Africa in the late 1800s as a garden ornamental (yet another!), the species is long since naturalised in sheltered coastal areas from (at least) the Sunshine Beach to southern NSW. It is a rather prickly, sprawling plant with long, arching shoots and attractively fern-like appearance. Small white or pinkish flowers are followed by scarlet berries with black seeds. The plants have a vigorous root system, supplemented by whitish tubers. The latter store moisture and may contribute to the species' survival in tough conditions: such as being dumped, pot and all, on tip or in bushland!

While not considered a major threat to agriculture, the Asparagus Fern out-competes native shoreline plants that help control dune erosion. Ironically, apart from original human contribution to the fern's spread, it is also propagated by native birds such as the endearing Silver Eye. Interestingly, it is thought that a rampant related Asparagus in the Tallebudgera Creek area (easily seen from the mangrove boardwalk near Fleay's Sanctuary) may be dispersed along the stream banks by Water Dragons. These large lizards seem to have a taste for the berries.

The Asparagus Fern can be found in a variety of 'natural' areas, from behind coastal dunes to open woodland, and forms an almost unbroken mat back of the mangroves on many Moreton Bay islands. (Here and there the related spiny climber Protasparagus plumo may be found: fortunately, not the problem posed by this deceptively filmy species on Lord Howe Island.)

I have to confess that in earlier years I'd assumed the pretty Asparagus Fern seen on beach walks was a native plant, and felt a twinge of guilt when stealing one! Little did I foresee a future role helping a newly-formed Bush Care Group eradicate a plant now considered most serious among "twelve of the more troublesome ornamental species of sand seashores."

So far, no easy means of dealing with this pretty weed. Best method and hands-on, seems to be initial removal of each plant's crown and all berries: with follow-up digging out.

Sue Mathams' Asparagus Tips!

Tip 1 - An effective way of removing Asparagus fern (Asparagus densiflorus) by hand with minimal soil disturbance is by crowning. The growing point of Asparagus fern is the crown, which is below the soil surface. The crowning technique is as follows:

• Grab the stems and hold tightly so you can see the base of the plant (wear sturdy gloves).
• Insert boning knife or trowel around the crown, going in at an angle to the base of the crown.
• Cut through roots to remove the crown. Only the crown has to be removed to kill the plant.
• Either remove the crown completely from the site or leave it where it has no contact with the ground eg in the fork of a tree. (Remember to replace any soil that has been disturbed and put the existing mulch back over the site.)

Tip 2 - The tubers of Asparagus fern are only for storing water and can be left in the ground.

(Reproduced from Beating around the bush, Redland Shire Council.)

Wandering Jew

There are native wandering jews as well as exotic ones and it is not always easy to tell them apart, except that the exotic form tends to be rampant and invasive in the bush and the native one seems to be rampant and invasive in cultivated gardens.

When flowering the natives are easy to pick as they have a single three-petalled blue flower. The most common one is Commenlina cyanea. The weedy ones (Tradescantia albiflora) have a single white flower or a striped leaf with a purple flower. All these plants are completely ground hugging.

Another plant that grows near waterways and can be confused with the white-flowered wandering jew is Aneilema acuminata. This plant has branched heads of white three petalled flowers and its stems grow upright to a height of about 20 cm.

Control of exotic Wandering Jews is very difficult as they grow in a tangled mess and tend to break off, leaving stem sections that grow back readily. Runners need to be rolled up and roots severed at the nodes. The material needs to be removed from the site as it will regrow from stem sections. Thick infestations can sometimes be rolled up a bit like carpet severing the roots at nodes as you go.

(From the Redland Shire Bushcare Newsletter - Beating Round the Bush)

Cocos or Queen Palm

It's no wonder the nursery industry gets fed up with us. As soon as they find a plant that's attractive, hardy and easy to propagate the jolly environmentalists are jumping up and down saying it's an environmental weed. I guess our answer to that is that a little more caution should be taken before plants are mass produced and flooded onto the market.

The Cocos (or Queen) palm (Arecastrum romanzoffianum) is becoming one of the worst weeds in bushland areas as a result of being flooded onto the market over the past few years, selling for as little as $4 for quite large palms. As a result we have suburb after suburb of gardens full of Cocos palms. So what is the problem? Cocos palms are prolific seeders, and are easily transported by flying foxes. The seeds germinate readily and are coming up in bushland everywhere. The fronds take a lone time to break down and when dumped in bushland, as they frequently are, they send out a 'this is a rubbish tip' signal. Flying foxes don't digest the fruit well and if there are too many in their diet they cause problems for them. The palm fronds also injure flying foxes as they feed. Many flying foxes have suffered horrific injuries after becoming entangled in the razor sharp fronds.

Cocos palms are easy to get rid of as they do not shoot out again after cutting. Remove the palms before seeds set and encourage your neighbours to cut off the fruit before they mature and get rid of them. Try to encourage neighbours, friends and relations to grow Bangalow (Archontophoenix cunninghamii) palms that are native to this area, self cleaning and very attractive hardy plants.

Note: Tree loppers have received half a dozen calls a week from people in the Redlands who want Cocos palms removed because they are not self cleaning and have become a mess.

(From the Redland Shire Bushcare Newsletter - Beating Round the Bush)

Glory Lilly

A recent article in the Sunday Mail advised that many gardeners may be harbouring a killer in the backyard. The Glory Lilly (Gloriosa superba) introduced to Australia about 20 years ago is highly toxic to humans and animals. Gardeners have apparently been unable to contain the plant, which is now reported to be a rampant and dangerous weed in Queensland and NSW. The recent death of several Swamp wallabies has been attributed to the ingesting of the glory lily.

The plants grow from a tuber and produce a vibrant red and yellow flower in summer. The article quoted a National Parks and Wildlife ranger as saying "Without urgent action this species will soon dominate our local coastal bushland and may lead to further deaths of native animals and birds".