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Cutch tree (Senegalia catechu)

In Australia, cutch tree has only been found in Darwin, Northern Territory, in an incursion now considered eradicated; it has not been recorded in NSW. Dense stands can shade out pasture and make mustering difficult, while sharp thorns can injure people and animals.

Key facts

Type: Weed, tree.

Native to: India, the Malay Peninsula and Indonesia.

Established in: .

Other names: Acacia catechu.

Best time to act: Hand-pull or dig seedlings after rain, when the soil is soft.

Identification

  • A small tree, usually 3–15 m tall, with fern-like leaves and pairs of hooked thorns up to 10 mm long.
  • Its leaves are usually 10–15 cm long, with 7–24 pairs of leaflets; the dark-green, hairy secondary leaflets are oblong and 2–6 mm long.
  • White or pale-yellow flowers form tight spikes, and the brown, hard seed pods are 50–125 mm long with a distinctive beak.
  • Stems are dark brown to black, with cork-like bark on young trees and rough bark that peels in long strips on mature trees.
  • Look-alike: It can resemble mesquite (Prosopis spp.), prickly acacia (Acacia nilotica) and mimosa (Mimosa pigra), which also have fern-like leaves and spines.
  • Look-alike: Look for cutch tree’s corky young bark, dark flaky mature bark and beaked seed pods.

Where it grows

In Australia it has only been found in Darwin, NT, in an incursion considered eradicated; it favours open woodlands and grasslands, particularly degraded, overgrazed or regularly burnt areas.

Why it matters

  • It can invade and shade out pastures, reducing productivity.
  • Its sharp thorns can injure people and animals.
  • Dense, impenetrable stands can make mustering difficult.

How it spreads

  • Cutch trees produce many seeds that can survive in soil for up to 20 years.
  • Cattle can eat the seed pods and excrete viable seeds; seeds and pods can also move in water or in mud stuck to animals, footwear, vehicles or machinery.

Control options

  • Contact your local council weeds officer as soon as possible if you suspect cutch tree is present.
  • After rain, when the soil is soft, hand-pull small seedlings or dig them out with a mattock, removing as much of the root system as possible.
  • Do not attempt to control mature trees without expert assistance; stem injection or cut-stump herbicide methods are described, and products must be used in accordance with the label and any permit.
  • Check treated sites at least three times a year for up to 20 years.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Check and clean mud from footwear, vehicles and machinery before leaving suspect or infested sites, as seeds and pods can move in attached mud.
  • Avoid moving seed pods or contaminated soil, and take account of cattle spreading viable seeds after eating pods.
  • 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): National Environmental Alert List. One of 28 weeds named on the National Environmental Alert List as early-stage invaders with serious potential to harm the environment.
  • Queensland: Prohibited matter. Report it to Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23 within 24 hours and do not move or deal with it. Everyone must also take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise its risks (the general biosecurity obligation).
  • New South Wales: Not a priority weed. Not a state or regional priority weed in NSW. 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: Declared pest (C1), prohibited. C1 Exclusion: to be kept out of WA, or out of the parts of WA where it is not established. Report any sighting to DPIRD. It must not be brought into WA (prohibited organism).
  • Tasmania: Not declared. Not a declared weed in Tasmania. Other laws may still apply.
  • Northern Territory: Declared weed. Weeds Australia lists it as a declared weed in the NT under the Weeds Management Act 2001. Check the NT declared weeds list for its class and what it requires.
  • Australian Capital Territory: Not declared. Not declared under the Biosecurity Act 2023 (ACT). A general biosecurity duty still applies.

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.

Sources