Senecio inaequidens

Family
Asteraceae
Life form

S

hemiphanerophyte
Other names
narrow-leaved ragwort
Boerstånds
 
Classified as invasive in
Austria
Germany
Norway
Slovenia
Sweden
The Netherlands
Origin
South Africa

Senecio inaequidens is a perennial herbaceous or woody shrub native to the mountain regions of South Africa. It is a prolific achene producer and has a vigorous growth and contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids, which are toxic to livestock. Seeds have accidentally been introduced to several locations in Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries with wool transports. S. inaequidens occurs over a wide range of human disturbed habitats and it has recently spread conspicuously along roadsides.

Sources

Ernst W.H.O. (1998: Invasion, dispersal and ecology of the South African neophyte Senecio inaequidens in the Netherlands: from wool alien to railway and road alien. Acta Botanica Neerlandica 47, 131-151.