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Weeds of Melbourne
Compiling a visual glossary of the weedy heritage of Melbourne, Australia.
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Square-stalked St. John’s Wort (<em>Hypericum tetrapterum</em>)

Square-stalked St. John’s Wort (Hypericum tetrapterum)

Format ImagePosted on March 24, 2021by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Square-stalked St. John’s Wort (Hypericum tetrapterum)

Square-stalked St. John’s Wort (Hypericum tetrapterum), a moisture-loving wort (i.e. medicinal root) from Europe. This plant has also been known as St. Peter’s Wort, although  …  Read the full post

Prickly Paddy Melon (<em>Cucumis myriocarpus</em>)

Prickly Paddy Melon (Cucumis myriocarpus)

Format ImagePosted on March 19, 2021by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Prickly Paddy Melon (Cucumis myriocarpus)

Prickly Paddy Melon (Cucumis myriocarpus) a bitter Southern African cucumber producing a myriad of tiny fruit. von Mueller made the first Australian collection of Paddy Melon  …  Read the full post

Banana Passionfruit (<em>Passiflora tarminiana</em>)

Banana Passionfruit (Passiflora tarminiana)

Format ImagePosted on February 17, 2021by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Banana Passionfruit (Passiflora tarminiana)

Banana Passionfruit (Passiflora tarminiana), an expert climber with edible fruit. Formerly planted more widely for the fruit (although this is often described as somewhat insipid),  …  Read the full post

St John’s Wort (<em>Hypericum perforatum</em>)

St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

Format ImagePosted on January 6, 2021by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

St John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum), a Eurasian perennial and herbal remedy widely established across temperate Australia. It is impossible to tell the story of St John’s  …  Read the full post

Tutsan (<em>Hypericum androsaemum</em>)

Tutsan (Hypericum androsaemum)

Format ImagePosted on December 2, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Tutsan (Hypericum androsaemum)

Tutsan (Hypericum androsaemum), a striking Eurasian St. Johns Wort with a shrubby aspect and attractive red fruits turning black at maturity. Naturalised in New Zealand  …  Read the full post

False Strawberry (<em>Potentilla indica</em>)

False Strawberry (Potentilla indica)

Format ImagePosted on July 30, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on False Strawberry (Potentilla indica)

False Strawberry (Potentilla indica), one of a number of species in a Rose-family genus adopted into herbal medicine and ornamental use. Native to monsoon Asia,  …  Read the full post

Cut-leaved Evening Primrose (<em>Oenothera laciniata</em>)

Cut-leaved Evening Primrose (Oenothera laciniata)

Format ImagePosted on March 18, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Cut-leaved Evening Primrose (Oenothera laciniata)

Cut-leaved Evening Primrose (Oenothera laciniata), an annual or short-lived perennial from the sand prairies of the eastern United States. Introduced in 1770 to English cultivation  …  Read the full post

Lesser Swine’s Cress (<em>Lepidium didymum</em>)

Lesser Swine’s Cress (Lepidium didymum)

Format ImagePosted on February 26, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Lesser Swine’s Cress (Lepidium didymum)

Lesser Swine’s Cress (Lepidium didymum), a South American member of the mustard family introduced to Europe by early colonial transfers, and from there to Australia  …  Read the full post

Hairy Willow-herb (<em>Epilobium hirtigerum</em>)

Hairy Willow-herb (Epilobium hirtigerum)

Format ImagePosted on January 21, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Hairy Willow-herb (Epilobium hirtigerum)

Hairy Willow-herb (Epilobium hirtigerum), an ephemeral Australian native plant whose lifeways flit between areas of disturbance. Hairy Willow-herb is adapted to exploit sites of short-lived  …  Read the full post

Sea Spurge (<em>Euphorbia paralias</em>)

Sea Spurge (Euphorbia paralias)

Format ImagePosted on January 13, 2020by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Sea Spurge (Euphorbia paralias)

Sea Spurge (Euphorbia paralias), a Mediterranean spurge introduced to Australian coasts and now actively transforming dune environments around the continent’s southern perimeter. Sea Spurge alters  …  Read the full post

Sweet Briar (<em>Rosa rubiginosa</em>)

Sweet Briar (Rosa rubiginosa)

Format ImagePosted on November 20, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Sweet Briar (Rosa rubiginosa)

Sweet Briar (Rosa rubiginosa), brought to Australia as grafting stock, a sometimes hedge and a domestic source of rose hip tea. Spread by birds and  …  Read the full post

Caper Spurge (<em>Euphorbia lathyris</em>)

Caper Spurge (Euphorbia lathyris)

Format ImagePosted on October 23, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Caper Spurge (Euphorbia lathyris)

Caper Spurge (Euphorbia lathyris), another latex-exuding Southern European ornamental selection, now naturalised in riparian woodlands throughout Southern Australia. Caper Spurge combined excellent vertical structure, drought-hardy  …  Read the full post

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort (<em>Polygala myrtifolia</em>)

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort (Polygala myrtifolia)

Format ImagePosted on October 22, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Myrtle-leaf Milkwort (Polygala myrtifolia)

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort (Polygala myrtifolia), a South African ornamental shrub and one of several dominant weeds in residential scrub around Port Phillip Bay, and on Mornington  …  Read the full post

Hoary Cress (<em>Lepidium draba</em>)

Hoary Cress (Lepidium draba)

Format ImagePosted on October 18, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Hoary Cress (Lepidium draba)

Hoary Cress (Lepidium draba), a Eurasian mustard globalised in the 1800s in contaminated seed and ship ballast. The first Australian infestation reportedly occurred at the  …  Read the full post

Tree Mallow (<em>Malva arborea</em>)

Tree Mallow (Malva arborea)

Format ImagePosted on October 11, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Tree Mallow (Malva arborea)

Tree Mallow (Malva arborea), a Mediterranean coastal shrub. Described in 1859 as very common in Australian gardens, the plant offered instant vertical colour; an 1886  …  Read the full post

Hairy Abutilon (<em>Abutilon grandifolium</em>)

Hairy Abutilon (Abutilon grandifolium)

Format ImagePosted on September 24, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Hairy Abutilon (Abutilon grandifolium)

Hairy Abutilon (Abutilon grandifolium), a South American plant similar in appearance to various South Asian Abutilons, hence another common name ‘Hairy Indian Mallow’. Although there  …  Read the full post

Cherry Plum (<em>Prunus cerasifera</em>)

Cherry Plum (Prunus cerasifera)

Format ImagePosted on September 17, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Cherry Plum (Prunus cerasifera)

Cherry Plum (Prunus cerasifera), a stone fruit native to the Balkans and to Western Asia, adopted and selected for its ornamental qualities (as well as  …  Read the full post

Geraldton Carnation Weed (<em>Euphorbia terracina</em>)

Geraldton Carnation Weed (Euphorbia terracina)

Format ImagePosted on September 10, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Geraldton Carnation Weed (Euphorbia terracina)

Geraldton Carnation Weed (Euphorbia terracina), a Mediterranean perennial established across southern Australia as a weed of pasture, roadsides and bushland. Also called False Caper Spurge  …  Read the full post

Oval Heron’s-bill (<em>Erodium malacoides</em>)

Oval Heron’s-bill (Erodium malacoides)

Format ImagePosted on September 9, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Oval Heron’s-bill (Erodium malacoides)

Oval Heron’s-bill (Erodium malacoides), a ‘mallow-leafed’ geranium native to the Mediterranean basin but spread to similar climates around the world as a contaminant of seed  …  Read the full post

Dove’s-foot Crane’s-bill (<em>Geranium molle</em>)

Dove’s-foot Crane’s-bill (Geranium molle)

Format ImagePosted on September 3, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Dove’s-foot Crane’s-bill (Geranium molle)

Dove’s-foot Crane’s-bill (Geranium molle), a Eurasian annual introduced to 19th century Australia as a contaminant of grain and fodder seed. This geranium has been noted  …  Read the full post

Large-flower wood-sorrel (<em>Oxalis purpurea</em>)

Large-flower wood-sorrel (Oxalis purpurea)

Format ImagePosted on August 27, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Large-flower wood-sorrel (Oxalis purpurea)

Large-flower wood-sorrel (Oxalis purpurea), a South African perennial bulb adopted as a garden ornamental. Typically flowering a bright magenta as seen here, white and pale-pink  …  Read the full post

Large Mediterranean Spurge (<em>Euphorbia characias</em>)

Large Mediterranean Spurge (Euphorbia characias)

Format ImagePosted on August 14, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Large Mediterranean Spurge (Euphorbia characias)

Large Mediterranean Spurge (Euphorbia characias), another beloved Eurasian garden filler with gloriously alien inflorescences and caustic latex sap. Tolerant of drought and high salinity levels,  …  Read the full post

Cape Wattle (<em>Paraserianthes lophantha</em>)

Cape Wattle (Paraserianthes lophantha)

Format ImagePosted on August 8, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Cape Wattle (Paraserianthes lophantha)

Cape Wattle (Paraserianthes lophantha), a Western Australian relative of Acacia that has been distributed in European cultivation across the rest of the continent. Widely purported  …  Read the full post

Indian Hawthorn (<em>Rhaphiolepis indica</em>)

Indian Hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis indica)

Format ImagePosted on July 16, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Indian Hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis indica)

Indian Hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis indica), a slow-growing, evergreen horticultural shrub from eastern Asia (and notably not from India). Tolerant of saline environments and disturbed soils, this  …  Read the full post

Gorse (<em>Ulex europaeus</em>)

Gorse (Ulex europaeus)

Format ImagePosted on June 23, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Gorse (Ulex europaeus)

Gorse (Ulex europaeus), brilliant with golden spangles, Western European nitrogen-fixer and destroyer of worlds. Furnishing a fresh fodder for stock (palatable once milled of its  …  Read the full post

Bowie’s wood-sorrel (<em>Oxalis bowiei</em>)

Bowie’s wood-sorrel (Oxalis bowiei)

Format ImagePosted on May 13, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Bowie’s wood-sorrel (Oxalis bowiei)

Bowie’s wood-sorrel (Oxalis bowiei), a South African species named for a long-dead Kew Gardens collector, and a covert and rarely collected weed of Melbourne and  …  Read the full post

Great Willow-herb (<em>Epilobium hirsutum</em>)

Great Willow-herb (Epilobium hirsutum)

Format ImagePosted on May 1, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Great Willow-herb (Epilobium hirsutum)

Great Willow-herb (Epilobium hirsutum), growing as a local infestation on the riparian edge of a pool on Skeleton Creek, just above where the Werribee railway  …  Read the full post

Soursob (<em>Oxalis pes-caprae</em>)

Soursob (Oxalis pes-caprae)

Format ImagePosted on April 30, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Soursob (Oxalis pes-caprae)

Soursob (Oxalis pes-caprae), blooming very early in a sheltered position at the Werribee River crossing of the Main Outfall Sewer. This alien wood sorrel poses  …  Read the full post

Castor Oil Plant (<em>Ricinus communis</em>)

Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus communis)

Format ImagePosted on April 16, 2019by Weeds of MelbourneLeave a comment on Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus communis)

Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus communis), revisited in environmental positions on Merri Creek and Kororoit Creek. This channel has already covered this East African species’ urban  …  Read the full post

Squirting Cucumber (<em>Ecballium elaterium</em>)

Squirting Cucumber (Ecballium elaterium)

Format ImagePosted on April 11, 2019by Weeds of Melbourne1 Comment on Squirting Cucumber (Ecballium elaterium)

Squirting Cucumber (Ecballium elaterium), a Spanish-origin, pan-Mediterranean poisonous weed likely distributed to Australia with imports of Merino sheep. The plant is appropriately named—as a relative  …  Read the full post

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