Weeds of Australia - Fact Sheet

Top Scientific Name Synonyms Family Common Names Origin Naturalised Distribution Notes

Scientific Name

Desmodium intortum (Mill.) Urb.

Synonyms

Hedysarum intortum Mill.

Family

Fabaceae (Queensland, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory)
Fabaceae: sub-family Faboideae (New South Wales)
Leguminosae (South Australia)
Papilionaceae (Western Australia)

Common Names

beggarlice, green leaf desmodium, green-leaf desmodium, greenleaf desmodium, greenleaf tick trefoil, greenleaf ticktrefoil, green-leaved desmodium, tick clover

Origin

Native to Mexico, Central America (i.e. Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama), the Caribbean (i.e. Hispaniola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico) and South America (i.e. Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and some parts of Brazil).

Naturalised Distribution

Naturalised in some parts of eastern Australia (i.e. in south-eastern and northern Queensland and in the coastal districts of northern New South Wales).

Also naturalised on some Pacific islands (i.e. the Galapagos Islands, Hawaii and New Caledonia).

Notes

Greenleaf desmodium (Desmodium intortum ) is regarded as an environmental weed in Queensland and northern New South Wales. It was recently listed among the top 200 most invasive plants in south-eastern Queensland and is mainly a concern in riparian vegetation, due to its shade tolerance and its ability to climb over other plants.