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Spiny emex
Spiny emex
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Spiny emex leaves
General information
Native to South Africa, spiny emex (Emex australis) is a vigorous annual with a thick tap-root system.
Spiny emex is not a declared pest plant under Queensland legislation.
| Scientific name |
Emex australis |
| Impacts |
- competes with cereal crops and legumes in early growth stages and causes significant reductions in yield
- burrs are easily dispersed
- can be poisonous to sheep
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| Description |
- leaves form a rosette in early growth and branch later
- prostrate stems grow from the centre of the rosette
- flowers are not conspicuous
- has distinctive fruit, forming clusters of spiny burrs in the forks of the leaves
- has woody burrs, 7 mm long, triangular in cross-section and bearing three rigid spines
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| Habitat and distribution |
- a common weed in the southern border areas of the Moreton and Darling Downs to the Maranoa, Burnett and Leichhardt districts
- occurs in disturbed sites such as cultivated paddocks, around buildings, along roadsides and in waste places
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| Control |
- seed is produced at an early age, so the control program must aim to kill all plants shortly after emergence
- a combined approach of cultivation and chemical control methods is most effective
- the spiny emex fact sheet has further information about registered herbicides and application rates
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| Declaration details |
- not a declared species under Queensland legislation but may be declared under local government law
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| Further information |
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Page maintained by Sonia Jordan
Last reviewed 14 September 2011
