14 Jan German ivy
Senecio macroglossus
A popular plant for hanging baskets, German
Ivy has escaped cultivation and found its way
into shaded areas on the verges of rainforests.
Family: Asteraceae
Origin: South Africa
Habit: Evergreen light or slender, twining herbaceous perennial.
Leaves: Bright green, fleshy, triangular or five-pointed ivy-like.
Flowers: Large, conspicuous pale yellow daisy flowers about 6cm across and carried singly on long slender stalks are borne just about all year round, but mainly during the summer months.
Fruit: The seeds are small and stick-like with a tuft of greyish-white bristles at one end (pappus). Dandelion-like tufty balls.
Roots: Shallow and fibrous, fragments re-root readily.
Dispersal: Seed is spread by wind, humans, contaminated soil (earthmoving equipment, car tyres etc) and garden refuse dumping.
Control: Hand Dig, Skirting, Foliar spray.