Leucaena
Leucaena leucocephala subsp. leucocephala, Fam. Mimosaceae
Large shrub or small tree to 6m
| Weed Category: |
Locally Declared Plants Under the Local Law provision of the Local Government Act 1993, Local Government may declare a weed specifically for their Council area and enforce their control.
|
| Weed: | Yes |
| Form or habit: | Shrub, Small tree |
| Family: | Mimosaceae |
| Leaf: | Compound Alternate Compound, alternate bipinnate, 45-190mm long, with 3-9 pairs of pinnae, each with numerous pairs of small dull greyish-green leaflets, 5-15 x1-5mm; minute hairs along the margin visible with a lens. |
| Flower conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Flower colour: |
White, Cream |
| Flower description: | Fluffy pale creamy white, in dense globular heads, 8-15mm in diameter; borne on axillary or terminal racemes. |
| Fruit conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Fruit colour: |
Brown |
| Fruit: | Dry |
| Fruit description: | Pods brown flattened minutely hairy, 55-170 x 15-20mm, in dense clusters and containing 8-24 glossy brown seeds, 5-9mm long. |
| Habitat: | |
| Distribution | |
| Food source for: | |
| Toxicity: | No toxicity known |
| Origin: | Central America |
| Notes: | Spread by: pods and seed spread by wind and water; in contaminated soil, forest mulch and garden waste. Invades/threats: roadsides, creek banks, mangrove and rainforest margins. Forms dense thickets, hindering the movement of wildlife and excluding all other plants. Notes: an aggressive, widespread and abundant environmental weed in this region. Seeds are long lived and highly viable. A different subspecies, L. leucacephala subsp. glabrata, is grown as a productive and highly nutritious fodder legume by the grazing industry. This subspeices has hairless new growth, and recently realised cultivars are less prolific seed producers. |
| Information sources: | Mackay Regional Pest Management Group (2018) Weeds of the Mackay Whitsunday Region Second Edition. |
