Polygonum aviculare flower CWS 3
Introduced, warm-season, annual or biennial, mat-forming herb, with a deep taproot. Stems are prostrate, to 1 m long and arise from the one point. Branch leaves are about half the size of stem leaves; leaves are narrow-elliptic to narrow-ovate, 15–50 mm long, 3–15 mm wide and 4–5 times as long as wide.. Flowers are small (2.6-4 mm long), pink or white and solitary or in small clusters in the leaf axils. Flowering is from spring to autumn. A native of Europe, it is a weed of disturbed areas, particularly roadsides, wasteland, cropping paddocks, gateways and degraded pastures. An indicator of poor ground cover. Can form dense mats in newly sown pastures and is a weed of summer fallows or summer crops such as lucerne. Strongly competitive, it has vigorous seedlings with a strong tap root; mature plants inhibit the germination of many seedlings (allelopathic effect) particularly medic species. May be grazed by cattle and sheep, usually without a problem, but seeds can cause enteritis in all types of livestock; leaves occasionally cause dermatitis. Controlled with healthy vigorous pastures. Registered herbicides are available for control.
Polygonum aviculare flower CWS 3
Introduced, warm-season, annual or biennial, mat-forming herb, with a deep taproot. Stems are prostrate, to 1 m long and arise from the one point. Branch leaves are about half the size of stem leaves; leaves are narrow-elliptic to narrow-ovate, 15–50 mm long, 3–15 mm wide and 4–5 times as long as wide.. Flowers are small (2.6-4 mm long), pink or white and solitary or in small clusters in the leaf axils. Flowering is from spring to autumn. A native of Europe, it is a weed of disturbed areas, particularly roadsides, wasteland, cropping paddocks, gateways and degraded pastures. An indicator of poor ground cover. Can form dense mats in newly sown pastures and is a weed of summer fallows or summer crops such as lucerne. Strongly competitive, it has vigorous seedlings with a strong tap root; mature plants inhibit the germination of many seedlings (allelopathic effect) particularly medic species. May be grazed by cattle and sheep, usually without a problem, but seeds can cause enteritis in all types of livestock; leaves occasionally cause dermatitis. Controlled with healthy vigorous pastures. Registered herbicides are available for control.