Furcraea

General description

Perennials < 3 m wide. Leaves are fleshy or leathery and held in rosette with or without basal trunk. Leaves have spiny or toothy margins. Flowers are often replaced by bulbils in axils of bracteoles.

What you need to know

To help protect our environment, from 1 September 2022, you:

• will not be allowed to breed, distribute, release or sell furcraea within the Auckland region.
• will not be allowed to plant furcraea within the Auckland region, unless you are transferring an existing plant on your land to another location within the boundaries of the same property.
• must destroy any furcraea on land that you occupy if it has been planted in breach of the above rules and you are directed to do so by an authorised person.

Habitats

Open or semi-open coastal areas, cliffs, banks, rocky outcrops, disturbed sites, open sites, pasture, wasteland, roadsides, canopy gaps, slips.

Dispersal

Seeds dispersed by water. Vegetative spread from bulbils, dispersed by water or human movement.

Impact on environment

Forms monocultures, excluding native vegetation and altering habitat structure for native fauna.

Control

Site Management

Follow up treated areas 3 times per year. Encourage natural regeneration of native plants or replant treated areas where possible after 2-3 treatments to establish dense ground cover and minimise reinvasion.

Recommended approaches

Physical control

Method: Dig out.

Plant parts requiring disposal: All parts.

Disposal options: Remove to greenwaste or landfill if practical.

Biocontrol

Biocontrol is currently not available for this species.

Community agrichemical control recommendations

No qualifications: Cut stump and paste freshly cut base of stems with double strength glyphosate gel
or cut stump and spray freshly cut base with 200ml glyphosate green per 1L of water. Remove cut stems to greenwaste or landfill.

Certified Handler/Experienced agrichemical user: Foliar spray with 200ml glyphosate green per 10L of water and 20ml penetrant.