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Rambling dock (Rumex sagittatus)

Rambling dock is an introduced, fast-growing climber that invades gardens, disturbed places and native habitats across parts of Australia. It smothers supporting vegetation, while underground tubers make it difficult to control.

Key facts

Type: Weed, vine and creeper.

Native to: Southern Africa, from Malawi and Zambia to South Africa.

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

Other names: Turkey rhubarb, Arrow dock, Climbing dock, Potato vine.

Best time to act: Treat before fruits ripen; rambling dock flowers mainly from spring to summer and produces seeds over summer to autumn.

Identification

  • A perennial climber with ribbed stems usually more than 1 m long, trailing along the ground or climbing over other vegetation.
  • Its somewhat fleshy, spearhead-shaped leaves are 6–10 cm long and 3–5 cm wide, with two spreading basal lobes.
  • Long underground rhizomes can grow to 5 m and produce numerous turnip-shaped tubers that become woody.
  • Small green or greenish-white flowers grow in branched clusters, with flower heads up to 30 cm long; they may have pink or purplish-red tinges.
  • The small, dark, triangular fruit is about 3 mm long and enclosed by enlarged petals.
  • Look-alike: Rosy dock (Acetosa vesicaria) is an erect, tufted annual with fibrous roots, unlike rambling dock’s climbing growth and thick tuberous roots.
  • Look-alike: Greater bindweed (Calystegia sepium) and forest bindweed (Calystegia marginata) can have similarly shaped leaves, but have smooth, non-ribbed stems and large, solitary white or pink flowers.

Where it grows

In Australia it occurs in south-eastern Queensland and coastal New South Wales, with scattered records in southern Victoria, Tasmania, south-eastern South Australia and south-western Western Australia, in disturbed sites and a range of native habitats, especially near towns.

Why it matters

  • It grows rapidly over and smothers supporting vegetation, preventing regeneration and reducing native species richness.
  • It is a major weed of gardens, disturbed sites and urban bushland, and can alter natural habitats.
  • In a northern Sydney study it was among the most common exotic species in a sclerophyll woodland, particularly in areas enriched by residential run-off.
  • It has been recorded among weeds dominating the understorey at Nielsen Park, where dense weed cover may prevent regeneration of the endangered native she-oak Allocasuarina portuensis.

How it spreads

  • It reproduces and spreads by seed, tubers and rhizomes; seeds can be carried by wind and water.
  • Seeds can also be spread by slashing and garden refuse, while tubers and rhizomes can move in water, soil, garden refuse and during plant removal.

Control options

  • Dig out seedlings and small plants, removing all tubers and rhizomes; plants can regrow from tubers that are difficult to locate.
  • Remove fruits before they ripen and dispose of seed capsules and tubers carefully to prevent further spread.
  • Chemical control is best carried out before fruits ripen, and registered herbicides may require repeated applications over several years for effective control.
  • Fire may not control the plant, as it can regrow from underground tubers after fire.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Avoid moving soil or garden refuse containing rambling dock, as these can carry its tubers and rhizomes; dispose of removed plant material carefully.
  • 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: 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: 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.

  • 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
  • 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