Control Measures
The first step in controlling the spread of weeds through gardens and bushland is to not plant them in the first place. Use locally native or non-invasive plants.
Green waste from your gardens should not be thrown into bushland or drains. This spreads the weeds through seeds and plant fragments that can readily germinate. The Water primrose (Ludwigia peruviana) sets seed with thousands of minute seeds in each seed head. These are readily carried away by wind, water and human activity. Broken segments of its stem also readily set root.
 Ludwigia seed heads produce vast amounts of minute seeds and are readily dispersed by wind and water. |
 Ludwigia is readily germinated from its minute seeds or stem fragments. |
Privet spp. also produce copious amounts of seed that often sit in the soil seed bank until optimum conditions allow them to germinate in large numbers.
 Large-leaf privet (Ligustrum lucidum) produces masses of viable and resilient fruit, readily spread by birds. |
 Large-leaf privet (Ligustrum lucidum) seedlings proliferating under a dense canopy of mature Privet. |
The second step in controlling the spread of weeds is to stop them flowering, fruiting and spreading. The control measures used for noxious weeds are also useful for similar environmental weeds and will often involve the removal of fruit and the cutting of vines from trees and fences.
The best method for controlling the spread of weeds is to remove them completely. This will often involve manual and chemical treatment of the plants.
Below are common demonstrated methods of treating noxious and environmental weeds. Note that some of the treatment methods are more suitable for one type of weed than another and that they often require repeated treatment to achieve complete removal. These brochures are available from the Australian Association of Bush Regenerators website.
- Control of small hand-pullable plants - 102kb
- Control of vines and scramblers - 115kb
- Control of vines with underground reproductive structures - 116kb
- Control of woody weeds - 112kb
Herbicides
The treatment of woody, herbaceous and climbing weeds often involves the use of selected herbicides. The use of herbicides should always be undertaken in accordance with the label and the associated Materials Safety Data Sheet.
For further information on the safe use and selection of appropriate herbicides, see the Noxious and Environmental Weed Control Handbook produced by the NSW Department of Primary Industries.
