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Athel pine (Tamarix aphylla)

A salt-tolerant tree that invades arid inland rivers, using large volumes of water and making riverbanks salty. The Finke River in the Northern Territory is a well-known example.

Key facts

Type: Weed, tree.

Native to: North Africa and western Asia.

Established in: QLD, NSW, SA, WA, NT.

Other names: Tamarisk.

Identification

  • Tree up to 15 m with rough grey-brown bark and drooping, jointed, grey-green branchlets that look like pine needles.
  • Tiny scale-like leaves that often have salt crystals on them.
  • Pale pink to white flowers on spikes at the branch ends.
  • Look-alike: Native she-oaks (Casuarina and Allocasuarina) have woody cones and lack salt on the foliage.

Where it grows

Inland watercourses, floodplains and around bores and homesteads in arid and semi-arid regions.

Why it matters

  • Uses large amounts of water and lowers waterholes.
  • Concentrates salt in the soil under the canopy.
  • Displaces river red gums and coolabahs.

How it spreads

  • Stem fragments carried by floodwater take root on riverbanks.
  • Planted around homesteads as a shade and windbreak tree.

Control options

  • Cut stump, basal bark or stem injection with herbicides registered for the situation.
  • Mechanical removal followed by treatment of regrowth.
  • Remove planted trees near watercourses before they become a source.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Collect and destroy cut branches, as fragments can strike in moist soil.
  • Inspect and clean vehicles, plant and footwear before leaving an infested area, paying attention to tyres, radiators, belly plates, tracks and floor mats.
  • Wash down at a designated bay where runoff is contained and can be monitored for seedlings.
  • Record each washdown so the client has evidence of clean entry and exit.

Classification by state

  • Australia (national): Weed of National Significance. One of 32 nationally agreed priority weeds, managed through national strategies with all states and territories.
  • Queensland: Restricted matter, category 3. Do not give it away, sell or release it into the environment. Everyone must also take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise its risks (the general biosecurity obligation).
  • New South Wales: Sale prohibited; Regional priority in 1 of 11 regions. It must not be imported into NSW or sold anywhere in the state. Regional priority weed in Central West. The general biosecurity duty applies: anyone dealing with it must prevent, eliminate or minimise the risk it poses.
  • Victoria: Restricted weed. Where it is a restricted weed, trade in it (including the plant, its seed or contaminated material) is prohibited.
  • South Australia: Declared plant. Depending on the declaration, it can be an offence to move it on public roads or sell it, and landowners may be required to control it on their land.
  • Western Australia: Declared pest (no control category). Declared pest in WA without a control category, so there is no state-wide control requirement, but movement and keeping rules can still apply.
  • Tasmania: Declared weed. Property managers are required by law to control declared weeds, and their import and sale are prohibited.
  • Northern Territory: Declared weed, Class A and B. Class A: to be eradicated. Class B: growth and spread must be controlled. All declared weeds are also Class C, so they must not be brought into the NT.
  • Australian Capital Territory: Declared pest, prohibited. It is a declared pest throughout the ACT. Dealing with it, such as selling, moving or keeping it, is prohibited.

Legal obligations

Every state and territory places a duty on landholders and people working on land to prevent the spread of invasive species, such as the general biosecurity obligation in Queensland and the general biosecurity duty in New South Wales. Declarations and control requirements differ between states and local government areas, so check the current official list before work starts.

  • Queensland: Biosecurity Act 2014 (Qld), administered by Biosecurity Queensland (13 25 23)
  • New South Wales: Biosecurity Act 2015 (NSW), administered by NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
  • South Australia: Landscape South Australia Act 2019 (SA), administered by the regional landscape board
  • Western Australia: Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 (WA), administered by the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
  • Northern Territory: Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976 (NT), administered by NT Department of Lands, Planning and Environment

Sources