| Contact us | A-Z | Sitemap |
Environment & Waste Pests & weeds Weed of the month Weed of the month- Climbing Asparagus Fern

Weed of the month- Climbing Asparagus Fern

climbingasparagusfernClimbing asparagus fern (Asparagus africanus) is a garden plant that can escape into bushland and causes serious environmental problems. It is a climber that can easily scale surrounding plants to reach heights of 12-15 meters. It has the potential to smother trees and damage vine scrubs, rainforests and riparian vegetation. Climbing asparagus fern is a declared class 3 plant under the Land Protection Act 2002.

This African native has narrow leaves and a prickly stem that helps it to scale up and over other plants or structures. It has clusters of small white flowers during spring that are followed by green berries that ripen to orange/red. These berries are eaten and dispersed by birds. In the absence of a host plant to climb this weed can grow as a scrambling low shrub.  

This plant has a root and tuber system, and this adds to the difficulties of controlling it. When small out breaks occur the underground root system can be carefully removed and hooked up where the tubers cannot re-root. Take care to remove the entire crown or underground stem of the plant. This method requires digging underneath the central growing point and lifting it out of the ground. Any regrowth that occurs can be kept under control by regular mowing or digging out. Larger infestations can be controlled by basal barking or the cut and paint method.
 
(All herbicides must be applied strictly in accordance with the directions on the label)
Text Size
[ Reset Settings ]