14 Jan Lippia
Phyla canescens
Introduced as a lawn species and once used
to stabilise soil on banks of irrigation canals
and around weirs. Overruns native vegetation,
and is capable of suppressing the growth of
neighbouring plants.
Family: Verbenaceae
Origin: Americas from California to Argentina and Chile
Habit: Hardy, mat forming, perennial herb with stems that root at nodes.
Leaves: Ovate, with blunt short teeth; 0.5–3 cm long, 2–10 mm wide, without
hairs or with short dense hairs; leaf stalk absent or short.
Flowers: Inflorescence a dense short cylindrical to globe-shaped spike of
tubular flowers, on a stalk which is 1–6.5 cm long and usually
much longer than leaves at the stalk base; petals usually lilac or
pink. Flower tubes 2–3 mm long. Spring to late autumn.
Fruit: Ellpisoid to globose, 1.5–2 mm long.
Roots: Dense and mat forming.
Dispersal: Seed and fragments spread by water, humans, contaminated
soil (earthmoving equipment, car tyres etc) and garden
refuse dumping.
Control: Foliar spray, pasture improvement techniques.
