Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgments
- 1 Biological control of weeds in the tropics and sustainability
- 2 Acacia nilotica ssp. indica (L.) Willd. ex Del. (Mimosaceae)
- 3 Australian Acacia species (Mimosaceae) in South Africa
- 4 Ageratina adenophora (Sprengel) King and Robinson (Asteraceae)
- 5 Azolla filiculoides Lamarck (Azollaceae)
- 6 Cabomba caroliniana Gray (Cabombaceae)
- 7 Invasive cactus species (Cactaceae)
- 8 Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson (Asteraceae)
- 9 Clidemia hirta (L.) D. Don (Melastomataceae)
- 10 Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt (Cucurbitaceae)
- 11 Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms–Laub. (Pontederiaceae)
- 12 Lantana camara Linn. (Verbenaceae)
- 13 Mimosa diplotricha C. Wright ex Sauvalle (Mimosaceae)
- 14 Mimosa pigra L. (Leguminosae)
- 15 Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae)
- 16 Passiflora mollissima (HBK) Bailey (Passifloraceae)
- 17 Pistia stratiotes L. (Araceae)
- 18 Prosopis species (Leguminosae)
- 19 Salvinia molesta D. S. Mitchell (Salviniaceae)
- 20 Solanum mauritianum Scopoli (Solanaceae)
- 21 Application of natural antagonists including arthropods to resist weedy Striga (Oranbanchaceae) in tropical agroecosystems
- 22 Biological control of weeds in India
- 23 The role of International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in biological control of weeds
- 24 The role of Secretariat of the Pacific Community in the biological control of weeds in the Pacific Islands region – past, present, and future activities
- Index
9 - Clidemia hirta (L.) D. Don (Melastomataceae)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 August 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgments
- 1 Biological control of weeds in the tropics and sustainability
- 2 Acacia nilotica ssp. indica (L.) Willd. ex Del. (Mimosaceae)
- 3 Australian Acacia species (Mimosaceae) in South Africa
- 4 Ageratina adenophora (Sprengel) King and Robinson (Asteraceae)
- 5 Azolla filiculoides Lamarck (Azollaceae)
- 6 Cabomba caroliniana Gray (Cabombaceae)
- 7 Invasive cactus species (Cactaceae)
- 8 Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson (Asteraceae)
- 9 Clidemia hirta (L.) D. Don (Melastomataceae)
- 10 Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt (Cucurbitaceae)
- 11 Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms–Laub. (Pontederiaceae)
- 12 Lantana camara Linn. (Verbenaceae)
- 13 Mimosa diplotricha C. Wright ex Sauvalle (Mimosaceae)
- 14 Mimosa pigra L. (Leguminosae)
- 15 Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae)
- 16 Passiflora mollissima (HBK) Bailey (Passifloraceae)
- 17 Pistia stratiotes L. (Araceae)
- 18 Prosopis species (Leguminosae)
- 19 Salvinia molesta D. S. Mitchell (Salviniaceae)
- 20 Solanum mauritianum Scopoli (Solanaceae)
- 21 Application of natural antagonists including arthropods to resist weedy Striga (Oranbanchaceae) in tropical agroecosystems
- 22 Biological control of weeds in India
- 23 The role of International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in biological control of weeds
- 24 The role of Secretariat of the Pacific Community in the biological control of weeds in the Pacific Islands region – past, present, and future activities
- Index
Summary
Introduction
Clidemia hirta (L.) D. Don (Melastomataceae) commonly known as soapbush or Koster's curse, is a neotropical plant ranging from southern Mexico to northern Argentina and east to the islands of the West Indies (Wester and Wood, 1977). It is a densely branched shrub, which grows up to four meters in height. The stems are covered with red bristles. The leaves are opposite, simple, and petiolate. Five to seven major veins originate at the base of the leaf and extend to the apex. The inflorescence is a panicle that can be subterminal or axillary. The calyx has five hairy linear lobes atop a long urceolate hypanthium. The corolla consists of five to seven small white petals. Fruits are borne in clusters of dark blue berries, hairy ovoid, 6 to 9 mm long and can have well over 100 seeds per fruit (Gleason, 1939; Wagner et al., 1990). The seeds are 0.5 mm in diameter and are readily dispersed by frugivorous birds (Simmonds, 1933; Garrison, 2003), and probably other vertebrates (including humans via footwear) such as mongoose. Soil disturbance by wild pigs in Hawaii facilitates invasion of C. hirta into native forest (Smith, 1992).
In its native range, C. hirta occupies forest edges, streams, trails, roadsides, and disturbed sites. It occurs as scattered plants, occasionally as thickets, which flourish for a few years and succumb to competition or diseases and insects.
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- Information
- Biological Control of Tropical Weeds Using Arthropods , pp. 163 - 174Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2009
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