Watch out for this weed in your Maui pasture - fireweed is poisonous to livestock
It's easy to identify this pest known as fireweed, by the yellow daisy-like flower with 13 petals. The leaves are oblong and serrated. The plant is only about 12" tall or less. Plenty of images are available online.
Senecio madagascariensis is the noxious plant that has taken hold in upcountry Maui farmland. Originally from Australia, the seeds were brought to Maui in a carpet grass mix for applying to roadside areas. Each plant produces thousands of seeds that are spread by wind, boots and tires. The plants are toxic to cattle and horses, causing slow growth, illness and even death. Sheep and goats seem to be unaffected, and have been used as a method of controlling this weed.
Learn more from the Maui News.
The infestation is mostly in Makawao and Kula on Maui, with limited range in West Maui. The Big Island also has populations of fireweed. I was dismayed to find this plant in our Haiku pasture and suspect it came from the tires of our backhoe which did some work on a Makawao pasture that was very full of the weed. Now I'm keeping a wary eye out for more specimens, which promptly get pulled and discarded safely.
It's not so easy to control this weed. The Hawaii Dept. of Agriculture is working on a biological control by way of a moth that feeds on the plant...Secusio extensa. Tests will be conducted later this year to see if it will work. The alternative is to use a lot of pesticide, repeatedly and extensively. Seeds can stay viable for years in the soil.
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