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Paterson's curse (Echium plantagineum)

Paterson's Curse is an extremely widespread crop and pasture weed throughout temperate Australia, where it can form dense, dominant infestations. It competes with useful pasture species and contains toxins that can harm livestock.

Key facts

Type: Weed, herb.

Native to: Central, southern and eastern Europe, the British Isles, Mediterranean islands, northern Africa, temperate Asia, the Canary Islands, Madeira and the Azores..

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

Other names: Salvation Jane, Purple Bugloss, Blue Echium, Blueweed.

Best time to act: Look for seedlings emerging in late summer to early autumn and treat plants while actively growing at the seedling or rosette stage, before they elongate and flower in late winter and early spring.

Identification

  • An annual herb growing up to 120 cm tall, it has several erect stems arising from a stout taproot and a large rosette of leaves at its base.
  • Stems and leaves are covered in hairs that can irritate skin; rosette leaves grow up to 30 cm long and 8 cm wide, while stem leaves are narrower and stalkless or stem-clasping.
  • Trumpet-shaped flowers are 2–3 cm long, pink in bud and usually purple to blue when open; occasional flowers are white and pink.
  • Each flower can produce up to four brown to grey, wrinkled and pitted seeds, 2–3 mm long, enclosed in a stiffly bristled calyx.
  • Look-alike: Viper's Bugloss has blue flowers that are shorter, about 12–15 mm long, compared with Paterson's Curse flowers at 20–30 mm; Italian Bugloss has pale yellow or cream flowers.
  • Look-alike: Lucerne has similarly sized plants and purple flowers, but its stems and leaves are not hairy.

Where it grows

In Australia it occurs on roadsides, waste places and pastures, sometimes in crops, and is widely naturalised across southern and south-eastern regions.

Why it matters

  • It can form extensive, dense and persistent populations and compete vigorously with seedlings of native and useful pasture species.
  • It contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids that can cause chronic liver damage and livestock deaths, particularly after substantial consumption over prolonged periods.
  • The plant's abrasive hairs can cause dermatitis, itching and inflammation in people and livestock, and it can trigger hayfever.
  • An estimated 33 million hectares of land is infested nationally, and its cost to Australia's sheep and cattle producers is estimated at $250 million per year.

How it spreads

  • Mature infestations can produce up to 12,000 seeds per square metre in a year, and seed banks under dense infestations can reach 30,000 seeds per square metre.
  • Most seed falls from the plant at maturity, though some remains on it; water can spread seed, especially in riparian areas and where erosion or runoff occurs.
  • Contaminated soil, fodder and vehicles, as well as livestock fur and manure, are thought to be primary seed transport vectors in Australia.

Control options

  • Hand hoeing and pulling are suitable for isolated plants, and cultivation can also control Paterson's Curse.
  • Destroy flowering plants, for example by burning, because seeds can continue to mature after plants are cut, pulled or hoed.
  • Grazing, particularly by sheep, can be effective when managed correctly.
  • Use registered herbicides at the seedling or rosette stage while plants are actively growing, and consult the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority for chemical information.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Avoid moving contaminated soil or fodder, and clean vehicles before leaving infested areas, as soil, fodder and vehicles can transport seed.
  • Livestock fur and manure can also carry seed between sites.
  • 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: Regional priority in 1 of 11 regions. Regional priority weed in Hunter. 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. 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: Declared pest. It is a declared pest throughout the ACT.

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
  • Tasmania: Biosecurity Act 2019 (Tas), administered by Biosecurity Tasmania
  • 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

Sources