Biological Control of Lippia

  • 18 pages

  • Published: 25 Oct 2011

  • Author(s): van Klinken, Rieks, Julien, Mic

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In Australia the area affected by lippia is mainly in the Murray–Darling Basin, in south-east Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. The industries most affected by lippia invasions are pastoral production and mixed farming enterprises. The environment in general, including several Ramsar and other protected wetlands, is also affected. In most situations biological control is the only realistic way of managing this weed, and the long-term purpose of this research is to find effective and safe means of biological control.

Native range survey work relied on classic field survey techniques across the native range of lippia, supplemented by culturing and preliminary testing of potential agents in the laboratory in Buenos Aires. This work was done by an entomologist from the US Department of Agriculture’s South American Biological Control Laboratory and a plant pathologist from the University of Bahia Blanca. Genetic work principally involved sequencing of P. canescens and P. nodiflora samples collected from around the world. Special effort was directed at sampling P. nodiflora from Australia, Africa, Asia and the Americas to help determine its native range distribution.