Caring for the Australian countryside

Management of invasive plants

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Tuesday 7 August 2012, 6 pm

Dr Richard Groves
Honorary Research Fellow, CSIRO Plant Industry

Richard Groves trained in agricultural science and plant ecology, obtaining his PhD at the University of Melbourne. Subsequently, Richard’s research with CSIRO focussed on both agricultural and natural ecosystems and the effects of invasive plants on them. He worked on the use of plant pathogenic fungi for the biological control of several invasive plants, such as skeleton weed, spiny emex and thistles. His understanding of natural plant communities and their invasion by introduced plants was recognised by his membership from 1984 to 1987 of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the SCOPE international program on Biological Invasions. He also led the program on Weeds of Natural Ecosystems in the CRC for Weed Management Systems from 1995 to 2002. Richard was Officer-in-Charge of CSIRO’s European Laboratory at Montpellier, France from 1992 to 1995, and he has been a member of the Australian Weeds Committee and the Gene Technology Technical Advisory Committee. He is currently a member of the Advisory Panel for the Australian Centre for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

Management of invasive plants

Since 1908, the Federal Quarantine Act has tried to prevent the introduction to Australia of known invasive plants. Recent revisions to that Act have sought to prevent any plant being introduced unless proven harmless. Currently, Australia has about 27,500 introduced plants; the number of naturalised plant species is about one-tenth of this total and continues to rise linearly. The proportion of the total of known naturalised plants that goes on to become weedy depends on human perceptions of weediness. Richard will quantify the transitions from introduced to naturalised to weedy plants and discuss them in terms of past and present management. Some invasive plants have been introduced accidentally, in the case of agriculture, but more often they have been introduced deliberately as potential pasture plants or for ornamental horticulture and now cost the Australian economy more than $3.5 billion annually. Examples of plant species at different stages of invasion will be presented and their impact on the sustainability of both agricultural and natural systems as well as on human health will be discussed.