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I. INTRODUCTION Purposes and scope Weed control is the major management and conservation issue in Canberra�s bushlands and is also a major problem for home gardeners. Over half of the plant species recorded in Canberra�s reserves are exotic (i.e. come from abroad) � and often originated from home gardens. In many bushland areas, especially those adjacent to housing areas, herbaceous and/or woody weeds are dominant. Weeds replace native species, alter ecosystem functioning and diminish recreational enjoyment. This website identifies the region�s most significant weeds and how they may be readily controlled in nature parks including urban parks and places, and in home gardens. The list of weeds dealt with here (see#IV and V) was established initially by writing to all the coordinators of all Canberra Nature Park components and urban places. Each coordinator was asked to identify from a more comprehensive list those that were judged to be a major problem, or a moderate or minor one. The first category was scored as 3, the second as 2, and the third as 1. In general only those weeds that scored 10 or more, from the 20 responses to this questionnaire, were included. This process was useful in confirming the authors� first impressions of what were the most common weeds. It also brought to light several suggestions of indigenous plants that could be mistaken for exotic weeds - see #V. #III gives General Methods of control of herbaceous weeds, exotic grasses and woody weeds. i) Description and identification; ii) Suitable methods of control, especially in the park-care context. Usually about 10-12 species in each major category are dealt with. Aquatic weeds are not included because their surveillance and control are usually done by professional officers specialized in this field. The emphasis is on control methods within the possibilities of parkcare/landcare volunteers or home gardeners. For herbaceous and grasses and woody weeds, control methods are given for the category as a whole. For each weed one or more photos are included and/or a scan (especially of grasses) or a line sketch. # VI gives descriptive summaries of indigenous plants that may be mistaken for weeds and deliberately removed or inadvertently damaged during weed control activities. The aim is not to present a new scientific treatise but to provide an accessible document, in the form of a set of illustrated sheets (usually illustrations + text for about one weed per window) to help people who are not familiar with the identification or appropriate control methods of the common weeds. This is useful because beginners find it initially hard to identify some of these weeds in the larger scientific works on weeds, and then to access simple guidelines and up-to-date tips on suitable control methods. For comparison with the list of weeds dealt with here, the list of �Declared Pest Plants� in the ACT is given (but re-arranged by category) in Appendix 1. The list of common weeds named and illustrated in the brochure �Garden Plants Going Bush� is given in Appendix 2. The following reference works deal with important aquatic plants - not included here: Sainty GR, Jacobs SWL. Waterplants of New South Wales. Sydney, Water Resources Commission, NSW, 1981. [Full details on identification and biology of aquatic plants and guidelines on their management.] Cremer K et al. Willow management for Australian rivers. Kingston, ACT, CSIRO Forestry and Forest Products, 1999. The use of herbicides is generally beyond the scope of volunteer workers in Canberra Nature Park and Canberra Urban Parks and Places, other than the use (by CNP volunteers) of glyphosate for �cut and dab� treatment of woody weeds (see #5). Important details on this issue are given at the end of the section on methods of control of herbaceous weeds (#4). This posting on the web is a first stage. The authors are willing to expand it (e.g. to cover the less common weeds) if that appears useful in the future. Feedback to the first-mentioned author (at 5 Lamington Street, Deakin 2600 ACT; Tel. (02) 6281 4822; [email protected]) as to content, technical issues, scope and presentation would be much appreciated. Glossary of botanical terms used Awn: a bristle-like appendage on the seedhead (common in grasses) Biennial: (plant) living for more than one but less than two calendar years Bract: a leaf-like structure often surrounding flower or cluster of flowers Inflorescence: a group of flowers arising from one main stem Panicle: a branched inflorescence composed of racemes (see diagramme) Perennial: (plant) living for more than 2 years Raceme: a cluster of flowers on stalklets whose growing point continues to add younger flowers at the tip Sepal: one of the (usually green) segments in the outer leaf-like whorl of a flower Spikelet: a cluster of small flowers enclosed by a pair of bracts (membranes) in a seedhead Bibliography General ACT Department of Urban Services, Parks & Conservation Service. ACT Bushcare Manual, 1997. Id. Pest Management Manual, Chapter 1 � Policy. Unpubl. Doc., 2000. Auld BA, Medd RW. Weeds: An illustrated botanical guide to the weeds of Australia. Melbourne, Inkata Press, 1987/1992, repr. 1999. Berry S, Mulvaney M. An environmental weed survey of the Australian Capital Territory (2 vols.) Conservation Council of the South-east Region and Canberra, 1995. Blood K, CRC Weed Management Systems . Environmental weeds - a Field guide for SE Australia. Mt Waverley, Victoria, CH Jerram Scientific Publishers, 2001. Blue Mountains Conservation Council & Blue Mountains National Parks & Wildlife Service. Weeds of Blue Mountains Bushland. A guide to identification and control. (Publ. )Productions 2000. Obtainable from: Blue Mountains City Council, Bushcare Section (Tel. 02 4780 5623). Bradley J. Bringing back the bush. Lansdowne Press, Sydney, 1988. Buchanan RA. Bush regeneration: recovering Australian landscapes. TAFE NSW, 1989. Conservation Council of the South-East Region and Canberra (Inc.) & ACT Government. Brochure � Garden plants going bush and becoming environmental weeds. Canberra Urban Parks & Places, 1998. Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) for Weed Management Systems. Best practice management guides 2-8 (#5 � Blackberry; #7- St John�s Wort; #8 � Horehound). CRC, Adelaide. Eddy D, Mallinson D, Rehwinkel R, Sharp S. Grassland Flora - a field guide for the Southern Tablelands. Canberra, Environment ACT, 1998. The terminology used for indigenous plants resembling weeds is generally from this book. Groves RH, Shepherd RCH, Richardson RG. The biology of Australian weeds. Vol. 1. Melbourne, RG & FJ Richardson, 1995. Lamp C, Collet F. Field guide to weeds in Australia. , 3rd ed. Repr.. Melbourne, Inkata Press, 1999. Muyt A. Bush invaders of south-east Australia. RG & FJ Richardson, Meredith, Victoria, 2001. Shepherd RCH, Richardson RG, Richardson FJ. Plants of importance to Australia: A checklist. Meredith, Victoria, RG & FJ Richardson, 2001. The terminology used for weeds is generally that recommended in this book. Thistles Groves RH, Kaye PE. Germination and phenology of introduced thistles species in southern Australia. Aust. J. Bot. 1989;37,351-9. Sindel BM. A review of the ecology and control of thistles in Australia. Weed Research 1991;31,189-201. Woodburn TL, Briese DT, Corey S. (Eds.) Thistle management. Reprinted from: Plant Protection Quarterly (Cooperative Research Centre for Weed Management Systems, University of Adelaide) 1996;11(2),276-7. Grasses Lamp CA Forbes , SJ, Cade JW. Grasses of temperate Australia. Revised Edn, Melbourne, CH Jerram/Bloomings Books, 2001. Wheeler DJB, Jacobs SWL, Norton BE. Grasses of New South Wales. Armidale, University of New England Monograph No. 3, 1982. Go to Top of Page |