Macquarie Valley Weeds Committee & Lachlan Valley Weeds Advisory Committee

Mimosa Bush

Botanical Name:	Vachellia farnesiana
Other Common Names:
Declarations
	Not Declared
Landholder Responsibilities:
Why Is It Bad?:	Mimosa Bush has the potential to become a significant problem for land managers as it has the ability to spread easily, grow quickly and dominate sites. Infestations lead to reduced carrying capacity and productivity. It produces dense thickets which usually infest watercourses, hindering access to watering points, and hindering mustering.
Identification
Habit:	Shrub
Leaves:	This thorny deciduous bush grows to 2-5m in height, and is often mistaken for Mesquite or Prickly Acacia. Leaves compound, feathery, 1-6 pairs of opposite segments each bearing opposite leaflets. Two rigid spines occur at leaf base just below axillary bud.
Flowers:	Mimosa bush flowers are globular orange/yellow. Flowers autumn, late winter-early summer.
Fruit:	Seed pods of mimosa are 5-7cm long,cylindrical, 10-15mm diameter and mature to black or dark brown.
Roots:
Control Methods
Manual Removal:	Mechanical chaining and chemicals will control and even eradicate larger stands. They must be used together as only grubbing or grading will increase infestation size.
Chemical Use:	Basal bark spray to 30cm in height is recommended for stems up to 15cm diameter. Larger stems must be sprayed to 100cm in height Cut stump – stump must be painted with a herbicide mixture immediately after the stump has been cut, leaving no time for vascular capillaries to close. Chemical treatment of infestations in bore drains – water must not be used for domestic use or for watering desirable plants for 7-14 days after treatment.
Fire:
Slashing & Cutting:
Biological Control:
Grazing:	Grazing pressure will achieve a certain level of control over isolated plants; however over-grazing can lead to thicket formation.
Cultivation & Scalping:
Smothering:
Solarisation:
Competition:
Monitoring:

Images

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Image Credit: Scott Kahler

Macquarie Valley Weeds Committee & Lachlan Valley Weeds Advisory Committee

Mimosa Bush

Declarations

Identification

Control Methods

Images