Chinese bushclover
Lespedeza juncea var. sericea
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Photo credit: ©Gerrit Davidse
Lespedeza juncea var. sericea
Description:
Origin and Worldwide Distribution:
Potential or Known Impacts:
How did it/could it get here?
Is it found in Northern Ireland?
Methods for Prevention:
You can help by reporting any sightings: @ the Centre for Environmental Data & Recording (CEDaR) - Or via the iRecord App.
Current Legislative Position (Listed on 14 August 2019)
Lespedeza juncea var. sericea
Description:
- This species is a perennial herb, growing to 1.5m tall, with leaves along its stem. It has dense hairs on its leaflets, giving them a grey-green appearance. Violet-purple flowers emerge singly or in clusters of up to 4.
Origin and Worldwide Distribution:
- This species is native to eastern Asia and eastern Australia, and is invasive through the Midwest and Southeast United States of America.
Potential or Known Impacts:
- It has a high seed production, which can easily help to colonise disturbed lands.
- It can outcompete native species by forming denser stands, shading out native species and outcompeting them for nutrients and soil.
- It may attract more pollinators to them than native species in the same area.
How did it/could it get here?
- It may be intentionally imported for forage, wildlife habitat, or control for soil erosion, or unintentionally imported through contaminated hay from the United States.
Is it found in Northern Ireland?
- It is not present in Northern Ireland.
Methods for Prevention:
- EU-level action includes a ban on sales and any planting or keeping, including in aquaria, as well as rapid eradication of any new populations to avoid the excessively high costs associated with its management later on.
- Report all sightings.
You can help by reporting any sightings: @ the Centre for Environmental Data & Recording (CEDaR) - Or via the iRecord App.
Current Legislative Position (Listed on 14 August 2019)
- This species must not intentionally be brought into the Union; kept; bred; transported to, from or within the United Kingdom, unless for the transportation to facilities in the context of eradication; placed on the market; used or exchanged; permitted to reproduce, grown or cultivated; or released into the environment.