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Himalayan honeysuckle (Leycesteria formosa)

Himalayan honeysuckle is an invasive environmental weed in south-eastern Australia, where it forms dense thickets that smother and shade native vegetation. It can prevent native plants from regenerating and is spreading in several states.

Key facts

Type: Weed, shrub.

Native to: Western China, India, Nepal and Burma.

Established in: NSW, ACT, VIC, TAS, SA.

Other names: Elisha’s Tears, Pheasant Berry, Cape Fuchsia, Flowering Nutmeg.

Best time to act: Look for flowers from late spring to autumn and fruit in summer and autumn; treat in late spring before flowering and fruiting.

Identification

  • A deciduous, soft-wooded shrub with multiple stems, usually growing to about 2 metres high.
  • Stems are green and hollow, and hairless or sparsely hairy.
  • Leaves grow in opposite pairs joined by a ridge across the stem; they are mostly oval, 5 to 15 cm long, and paler underneath.
  • Hairy white or pink tubular flowers grow in compact, drooping clusters partly surrounded by purple and green leaf-like bracts.
  • The oval berries are 6 to 10 mm long and reddish-purple or black.
  • Look-alike: Beauty Bush (Kolkwitzia species) and honeysuckles (Lonicera species) can look similar, but Himalayan honeysuckle has drooping flower clusters enclosed in distinctive purple and green leaf-like bracts.

Where it grows

In Australia it occurs in high-rainfall areas, especially moist, sheltered forests and riparian habitats, and is recorded in the ACT, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria.

Why it matters

  • Dense thickets smother smaller shrubs and shade out ground flora.
  • It prevents the regeneration of native plant species and can displace native plants and animals.
  • It is a serious threat to damp and wet sclerophyll forests and vegetation along streams.
  • Its fruits may be poisonous.

How it spreads

  • Birds spread the seeds after eating the berries; seeds can also be moved by deer, water, machinery, vehicles, slashing and soil movement.
  • Stem pieces can form roots when they contact moist soil, including pieces spread by slashing, garden-waste dumping or manual removal.
  • The species remains available through nurseries and markets.

Control options

  • Hand-pull or dig out seedlings and smaller plants using approved methods.
  • For larger plants, cut stems near ground level and treat the cut stem, use the drill-fill method, or spray with registered herbicides.
  • Treatments should be timed for late spring before flowers and fruits develop; follow-up may be needed because larger plants can reshoot.
  • Dense infestations can be slashed in winter before fruiting; dispose of cut material safely and treat regrowth in spring.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Clean soil and plant fragments from vehicles and machinery before moving between sites, as seeds and stem pieces can be spread this way.
  • Dispose of cut material safely and do not dump it as garden waste.
  • 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: Not prohibited or restricted. Not listed as prohibited or restricted matter in Queensland. 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: Permitted, not declared. Listed as a permitted organism in WA, so it can be brought in, but it is not a declared pest.
  • Tasmania: Declared weed. Property managers are required by law to control declared weeds, and their import and sale are prohibited.
  • 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: 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.

  • 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
  • Tasmania: Biosecurity Act 2019 (Tas), administered by Biosecurity Tasmania
  • South Australia: Landscape South Australia Act 2019 (SA), administered by the regional landscape board

Sources