Sunset over Old Grevillia
The Glaucous star thistle (Carthamus glaucus) is the pasture ninja. It has very thin, grey-green stems that are very hard to see against the greens of grasses. It is flowering now, so the mauve flowers increase the plant’s visibility somewhat. But its ability to hide is uncanny. If we see one, we stop and slash it with a brush hook or a hoe. The nest step in our protocol is to stand at the site of the chopped weed and slowly scan the area for other star thistles, then complete a second rotation, just in case. Sometimes we only notice them by standing on them as we walk back to the truck. George compares them to plovers, who sit motionless on the ground hoping that they won’t be noticed.
They are on our zero-tolerance list because they seem to grow, flower and set seed very quickly. Once they get a toe hold, they quickly multiply and dominate an area. The main areas of concern are the grassy margins of forested areas, where we can’t mulch with the tractor.
According to the NSW DPI,
In NSW it is a “class 5″ noxious weed, which places it at the low end of the seriousness spectrum. The NSW DPI helpfully states that for class 5 weeds, “[t]he requirements in the Noxious Weeds Act 1993 for a notifiable weed must be complied with.” A more useful definition [on anthore part of the NSWDPI site] is:
Plants that are likely, by their sale or the sale of their seeds or movement within the State or an area of the State, to spread in the State or outside the State.
There are no requirements to control existing plants of Class 5 weeds. However, the weeds are “notifiable” and a range of restrictions on their sale and movement exists.
