Weeds of Australia - Fact Sheet

Top Scientific Name Synonyms Family Common Names Origin Naturalised Distribution Notes

Scientific Name

Ipomoea purpurea (L.) Roth

Synonyms

Convolvulus purpureus L.

Family

Convolvulaceae

Common Names

annual morning glory, common morning glory, common morning-glory, common morningglory, morning glory, morningglory, purple morning glory, tall morning glory, tall morning-glory, tall morningglory

Origin

The exact native range of this species is obscure, however it is thought to have originated in tropical America.

Naturalised Distribution

Widely naturalised in the warmer parts of eastern Australia (i.e. eastern Queensland and the coastal districts of New South Wales). Also present in some inland parts of southern New South Wales (e.g. in the Griffith district).

Notes

Common morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea) is regarded as an environmental weed in New South Wales and Queensland, and as a potential environmental weed in Victoria. This species was introduced as a garden ornamental and is still occasionally grown in gardens. Unlike many of the other morning glory species, it is mainly a weed of agricultural areas and disturbed sites (e.g. crops, roadsides, parks, gardens, fence-lines and waste areas). However, it also invades bushland and riparian areas and can be a serious environmental weed in warm moist areas, where it chokes out native plants.

Common morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea) is present throughout the coastal districts of Queensland, being listed as an environmental weed on the Gold Coast and also present in the wet tropics in northern Queensland. It is a strong, twining, climber that is reported to grow into the canopy of sub-tropical rainforest in south-eastern Queensland, and its rampant growth is thought to be capable of destroying intact rainforest canopy.

This species is also listed as an environmental weed in north-eastern New South Wales, and is probably the third most troublesome morning glory in natural areas in this region. It is also one of the "exotic vines and scramblers" whose invasion is listed as a "key threatening process" in New South Wales.