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Broad-leaved privet (Ligustrum lucidum)

Broad-leaved privet has spread from gardens and hedges into bushland, especially in eastern and south-eastern Australia. It can form dense thickets that shade out native plants and change habitat for native animals.

Key facts

Type: Weed, tree.

Native to: Eastern Asia, including China, Korea and Japan.

Established in: QLD, NSW, ACT, VIC.

Other names: Tree Privet, Large Leaf Privet, Glossy Privet, Wax Leaf Privet.

Best time to act: Flowering occurs mostly in spring and summer, and fruit matures in autumn and winter.

Identification

  • A small tree, usually 4 to 12 m tall, with hairless stems and leaves.
  • Its leathery leaves are opposite, glossy dark green above and paler underneath, and 4 to 24 cm long.
  • Small white or cream flowers grow in large, branched clusters at the tips of stems, mostly in spring and summer.
  • Its oval or round berry-like fruits mature to bluish-black or purplish-black, mainly in autumn and winter.
  • Look-alike: Chinese privet, common privet and native privet have smaller leaves, 2 to 7.5 cm long; Chinese privet has hairy younger stems, while common privet loses its leaves in winter.
  • Look-alike: Native privet occurs only in northern and central Queensland and has smaller flowers, with petals about 2 mm long; broad-leaved privet may also be confused with cheese tree and Lilly-pillies when not flowering or fruiting.

Where it grows

In Australia it is mainly naturalised in wetter parts of eastern and south-eastern Australia, including rainforest areas, gullies, waterways, roadsides, open woodlands, pastures, grasslands and disturbed sites.

Why it matters

  • It invades rainforests, gullies and waterways, including relatively intact rainforest communities.
  • Dense thickets shade out and displace native species, alter habitat for native animals and can disrupt access to natural corridors.
  • In New South Wales it can support artificially high numbers of pied currawongs, affecting other native birds.
  • Its leaves and fruit are poisonous to livestock and people, and its pollen can irritate hay fever sufferers.

How it spreads

  • It reproduces by seed, dispersed by fruit-eating birds and other animals.
  • Seeds may also spread by water and in dumped garden waste.
  • The species has been widely cultivated in gardens, often as a hedge or windbreak; its first known Australian cultivation record was in 1857 at Camden Park in Sydney.

Control options

  • Remove larger seed-producing trees to reduce further dispersal by birds, and check local council or state and territory requirements.
  • Large stands can be cleared mechanically or manually; revegetate cleared areas and repeatedly hand-weed or maintain them until native vegetation is established.
  • Hand-pull younger plants and place uprooted plants upside-down with their roots in the air to dry; remove isolated plants with minimal disturbance to native vegetation.
  • Older plants can be treated with registered herbicides using cut-stump, basal-bark or stem-injection methods, following local requirements; fire is usually ineffective because plants regenerate rapidly.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Do not dump garden waste containing privet, as seeds may be spread in dumped garden waste.
  • Seeds may also be spread by water.
  • 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): No national listing. Managed under state and territory law.
  • 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: Regional priority in 1 of 11 regions. Regional priority weed in Central Tablelands. The general biosecurity duty applies: anyone dealing with it must prevent, eliminate or minimise the risk it poses.
  • Victoria: Not declared. Not declared under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994. Other Victorian laws may still apply.
  • South Australia: Not declared. Not declared under the Landscape South Australia Act 2019. Other laws may still apply.
  • Western Australia: Not listed. Not found in the Western Australian Organism List. Check with DPIRD before moving or keeping it.
  • Tasmania: Not declared. Not a declared weed in Tasmania. Other laws may still apply.
  • Northern Territory: Not declared. Not on the NT A to Z weed list, and Weeds Australia does not list it as declared in the NT. Check the NT declared weeds list before moving or planting it.
  • 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
  • Australian Capital Territory: Biosecurity Act 2023 (ACT), administered by ACT Biosecurity
  • Victoria: Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 (Vic), administered by Agriculture Victoria

Sources