The bug weed (Solanum mauritianum) invasion of Gauteng has now reached crisis proportions.
A single bug weed can grow into a 2m high tree in one summer, but it is in autumn and winter that birds eat the berries and spread the seeds. Bug weed is designated a Category 1 invasive alien plant, and by law, gardeners are obliged to remove and destroy the plant.
“I am on the rampage against bug weeds”, said Wendy Carstens from Friends of Melville Koppies this week. “I have discovered that many people have them in their gardens because they do not know that bug weed trees are category 1 alien invasive transformers. If we could make people aware of them and get them to remove them this would be a start. Motivating authorities to deal with bug weed in green spaces is the next hurdle”, she said.
How do Wendy and her team remove bug weed trees on the Melville Koppies?
“We cut the berries off carefully and put them into plastic bags. If the berries are left on the ground, they will still ripen as tomatoes do and the seeds will germinate,” she explains.
“The tree is cut down and the roots dug up. If the roots are too big to dig up, the tree is sawn off as close to the ground as possible with a bow saw. Then all the bark is chopped away from the stump to below ground level. This should prevent new shoots growing from buds in the bark. We don’t use herbicides on the trunks anymore. The debarking is more effective.
“We are struggling to cope with all the baby bug weeds that keep popping up in Melville Koppies. Birds feast on the seeds in neighbouring properties and then deposit them in the Koppies.”
l Now is the time to check if you have a bug weed in your garden and take it out. For more information, visit www.mk.org.za - Saturday Star