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Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense)

Introduced as an ornamental, Chinese privet has spread from gardens and hedges into bushland in eastern Australia. It forms dense thickets that shade out native plants and alter habitat for native animals.

Key facts

Type: Weed, shrub.

Native to: China and south-eastern Asia, including Taiwan, Laos and Vietnam.

Established in: QLD, NSW, ACT, VIC.

Other names: Small-leaved privet, Narrow-leaved privet, Privet, Hedge privet.

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

Identification

  • It is a large shrub or small tree, usually under 3 m tall but sometimes reaching 4 to 5 m.
  • Younger stems are rounded, greenish and hairy; older stems become greyish-brown and lose their hairs.
  • The opposite leaves are small, 2 to 7 cm long, and usually densely hairy, especially underneath.
  • White or cream flowers grow in dense clusters at branch tips; rounded, berry-like fruit turns black, bluish-black or purplish-black as it matures.
  • Look-alike: Broad-leaved privet has larger leaves and can grow much taller, while common privet loses its leaves in winter.
  • Look-alike: Native privet occurs in northern and central Queensland and has smaller flowers, with petals about 2 mm long; Chinese privet can also resemble native rainforest species such as Syzygium when it has no flowers or fruit.

Where it grows

In Australia it is mainly naturalised in coastal and sub-coastal eastern districts, particularly in wetter regions, including rainforests, waterways, roadsides, urban bushland and disturbed sites.

Why it matters

  • It invades gullies, creeklines, watercourses, forest gaps and rainforest margins, where dense thickets shade out and suppress native vegetation.
  • It can dominate the shrub layer, alter habitat for native animals and hinder animal movement through bushland.
  • Its leaves and fruit are poisonous to livestock and people, and its heavily scented flowers can cause severe allergic reactions in susceptible people.
  • An unidentified toxin in the leaves and fruit may cause tremors and seizures in poultry; no cases have occurred in Australia.

How it spreads

  • It reproduces by seed and root suckers, and can resprout after stems are cut or damaged.
  • Birds and other animals spread seeds after eating the fruit; seeds may also spread in water or dumped garden waste.

Control options

  • Remove larger seed-producing plants to reduce further spread by birds, and check local council or state and territory requirements.
  • Hand-pull young plants and remove isolated plants with minimal disturbance to native vegetation; place uprooted plants upside-down with their roots in the air to dry.
  • Large stands can be cleared mechanically or manually, then revegetated and repeatedly hand-weeded or otherwise maintained until native vegetation is established.
  • Older plants may be treated with registered herbicides using approved cut-stump, basal-bark, stem-injection, spraying or splatter-gun methods.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Do not dump garden waste containing privet, as seeds can 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: Permitted, not declared. Listed as a permitted organism in WA, so it can be brought in, but it is not a declared pest.
  • 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