an update in the fight against wandering trad

My thanks to Bill Incoll (Friends of Sherbrooke Forest) for providing this update, Bill has been tireless in his pursuit to rid the Dandenongs of Wandering Trad - Tradescantia fluminensis. Thanks also to Glenn Brooks-McMillan (Community Weed Action of the Dandenongs) and Anne Fitzpatrick (Yarra Ranges Landcare Network) who had a hand in preparing this summary update.

Regular readers of my blog will recall an earlier article detailing the call for research into a biological control for this weed nasty, ranked 10 in Yarra Ranges.

Wandering Trad forms a smothering carpet, it displaces
indigenous ground covers, herbs, grasses and orchids.
It is a common cause of rashes in dogs and is toxic
to cattle.

Funding has been found to start the battle with Tradescantia fluminensis (Wandering Trad). A recent Research Update provided by the Department of Environment and Primary Industry (DEPI) and CSIRO has provided the following news.

An application to the Australian Weeds Committee to have Wandering Trad (Trad) a target for biological control has been prepared and is being considered by the Committee.

While the application is being approved, testing of biological control agents can begin, provided this is done under safe quarantine conditions. Two agents, an insect and a fungal pathogen, are being imported from New Zealand. The fungal pathogen has already been imported and is currently in the quarantine facility with CSIRO in Canberra.

The insect, Lema basicostata, attacks the stem of the plant and greatly reduces the biomass of the plant. It has already been released in New Zealand and is successfully attacking Trad in the wild. It spreads by natural increase and will reduce the volume of weed until a natural balance is achieved that maintains a population of insects and a low biomass of Trad.
 

The fungus, Kordyana sp, (Brazilian yellow leaf spot fungus) attacks the leaves. The spores are spread by wind, much more quickly than the insect. This agent also has the potential to reduce Trad biomass to a low level.

The biocontrols will be tested on Australian native plant species likely to be affected, under strict quarantine conditions. DEPI will work on the insect, and CSIRO the fungus.

The first year of a three year program has been funded from State and Federal sources. Further funding must be found for two more years, leading to the safe release of up to four biocontrol agents.

In addition to the biological control program, Federal funding has been found to combat the spread and impact of Trad while the biological control program is carried out safely. These efforts will be concentrated where Trad is likely to affect rare or endangered species or communities in the Dandenong Ranges, on both private and public land.

It's great news and good to receive progress updates, it's a terrible weed which smothers everything else in its path and sadly is commonly found throughout the Dandenongs, especially along our waterways.

biocontrols for wandering trad?

My congratulations go to Bill Incoll, member of Friends of Sherbrooke Forest and organiser of a recent meeting to discuss biological controls for Wandering Trad, ranked 10th worst weed in Yarra Ranges.

The meeting was well attended with over 90 people who’d come to learn more about the potential for biological controls from David McLaren at DEPI.

David talked through the initial process required to have Wandering Trad declared as a target for a biological control program and how DEPI is working with Melbourne Water on this.

He went on to explain the testing and monitoring process in great detail and how the community can be involved in the process.

These creek banks are smothered in Wandering Trad,
it invades damp, wet and shaded areas and is widespread
along creeks and waterways.

New Zealand have spent between $1.5million and $2million on biocontrols for this weed as it is a serious issue there, fortunately for Australia we can benefit from their research.  

New Zealand have determined that three beetles and a pathogen (Yellow Spot Fungus) will be most beneficial as a biocontrol program, but of course rigorous testing on Australian flora will need to be conducted before we know what are the best solutions here.

Current removal of this weed is very labour intensive and given its location on the banks of many waterways means that spraying is very problematic and expensive. To safely remove Wandering Trad at the moment costs $20,000 per kilometre of creek bank and with 50km’s of streams in the Dandenongs this would equate to $1million.

The costs to see the research and implementation of a biological control for Wandering Trad is in the order of $400,000 to $450,000. 

Federal member for Latrobe, Jason Wood, has committed to funding for the removal of Wandering Trad, let’s make sure he comes good on his election commitment and puts the money into determining if a biological control solution is possible to get rid of this weed nastie. I look forward to seeing funding listed in the upcoming federal budget.