Chromolaena Odorata

Family: Asteraceae

Common Name: Hagonoy, Jack in the Bush, Siam Weed, Christmas Bush

Origin: South America and Central America

Reference: Global Invasive Species Database

An Assessment of the Genetic Diversity and Origin of the Invasive Weed Chromolaena Odorata (L.) King and Robinson in South Africa
A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE of RHODES UNIVERSITY by INGE VON SENGER July 2002

“C. odorata is regarded as the worst alien invasive plant species in the subtropical regions of South Africa”
“It is an aggressive, fastgrowing weed (Liggitt, 1983), which is said to have one of the greatest impacts of all alien invasive
plants in the Old World tropics and subtropics (Zachariades et al., 1999)”
“Plant diversity has been reduced in reserves, affecting all other dependant life forms (Coetsee, 1995)”
This species has been nominated as among 100 of the “World’s Worst” invaders
It causes skin complaints and asthma
It is toxic to animals
It’s beneficial uses are as green manure crop, to repel mosquitoes and snakes, fish poison, and repels rodents from maize
In the Global Invasive Species website, it says “is sometimes encouraged for use in shifting slash-and-burn agriculture to compete with Imperata cylindrica (alang alang or cogon grass), which is harder to control”
Whee! Cogon grass is even harder to control!
will add a picture of the flower when it blooms