Mimosa picture

I thought I would post this picture to show how mimosa can be invasive. This one is growing in a pine forest near my house. There are many more like this.

I need to photograph that field just north of Ocala, off State Road 326...it's half PINK in the bloom season.

What does a mimosa tree do that puts it on the invasive list ? I can understand plants that smother out other plants like some loosestrife varieties but how is a mimosa tree any different than any other tree that puts off seed pods and starts. Walnut trees shed tons of nuts and I find them everywhere and they put off a dangerous chemical - why are they not considered an invasive....

Mimosa's can't be any worse than the stupid helicoptor seeds that spread all over this time of year........

I'm just curious.....

This message was edited May 11, 2006 2:40 PM

Because mimosa, unlike black walnut, isn't supposed to be there and it impacts the balance of the native ecosystem. When the helicopter seeds are from native sugar, red or silver maple, I don't mind so much. When they're from the awful exotic (and very detrimental to native flora and fauna) norway maple, I mind them plenty.

This introduction to a web page on plant invaders of Mid-Atlantic natural areas is short and, I think, a pretty good concise explanation of the problem. http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/pubs/midatlantic/intro.htm

Walnut trees co-evolved on this continent with other species of both flora and fauna. The Walnut does not disrupt entire ecosystems in which it grows because it has been there co-existing quite nicely for tens of thousands of years providing sustenance to North American wildlife that depend upon it for survival.

Nice overview at the link provided by MaryMD7. The Albizia julibrissin, as well as all of the cultivars with those fancy names that have been unleashed on the buying public, are truly plants that need to be eradicated in my opinion. Please know that the Mimosa Tree is a host to Fusarium oxysporium f. perniciosum. If that isn't a threat to Public Health, I don't know what is. This Mimosa Tree / Silk Tree (Albizia julibrissin) has other equally undesirable qualities that aren't normally discussed because many people are far too attracted to it's blooms and many seem to prefer to ignore the shortcomings of Mimosa. It's deemed distasteful to talk about mycotoxin producing strains of filamentous fungi because well... people might not be so thrilled about having them in their yards.

Barring the above, this plant is wreaking havoc in natural areas and its numbers are growing as it readily escapes cutivation again and again and again.

I am pulling portions of what I have written in the past about Mimosa to save time-

Great Information Everyone.... Thanks......

I have to admit I have a couple of these in my yard and they cause less trouble than some of my other plants and trees (at least outwardly) I had no idea about all the other stuff..... Thanks for the learning experience......

Here is another picture of a volunteer chinese privet along a roadside. I must admit that this is the largest one I have seen, it must be twenty feet wide.

This message was edited May 12, 2006 10:44 AM

I can see why that may be bad ...... but Mimosa seem to grow more upright and seem relatively small in our area......

Yes and all the seedlings from Mimosa that end up miles away from the parent plants seem to take on the same form too. Very attractive from a distance particularly when they begin forming monocultures and are all in bloom at the same time. It's a shame they take such a devastating toll on the environment.

As you can see from the photo I posted, they can get to be about 30ft tall here.

I feel Everything is invasive if allowed to be.....oaks, pines, cheery trees, mulberry, sweet gum to name just a few of the 24 types of trees on our proprety... this place would be wall to wall trees if not controlled ......I find the mimosa delightful extra long blooming shade provider and welcome in my garden .....I control it like I control everything else.."..I just do it" How can something so beautiful be undesirable .shirleyt

This message was edited Jun 24, 2006 1:45 PM

Not everything is invasive if allowed to be. There is much scientific fact documenting same so that would be painting with extremely broad brush strokes.

There is an interesting thread on the definition of invasive over in the new Invasive Species Forum. You might want to read that thread. There are also other threads out there that address the issues of this plant.

Plants, such as the Mimosa, are injurious to Public Health as well as to the environment when allowed to exist and reproduce both sexually and vegetatively over here on the continent of North America. It is a hard concept to grasp and I know it took me a while back when I subscribed to the same belief system as you in that

The Oaks present on your property, providing they are one of the hundreds of species indigenous to east of the Rockies and not a Sawtooth Oak, are not injurious to Public Health or to our fragile ecosystems and their presence does not cost poor farmers millions of dollars eradicating from food crops. I am a true gardener and I, like many others who have a basic understanding of our fragile ecosystems and the complex issues associated with invasion by exotic species, find the Mimosa to be not only undesirable but in need of being eradicatd in its entirety from the continent of North America. Think of this tree as being the plant version of the Norway Rat that the colonists introduced to this continent several hundred years ago. It is undeniably a magnificent tree and its beauty is unparalleled, yet in the past 20 years we have learned so much about the dark side of this tree when planted outside of its native range that ignoring the facts is not in our best interests any longer for the sake of being able to have pretty blooms in our yards. Incidentally, I think rats are beautiful and intelligent and have had several as pets so I am not slamming rats. If only we could dig the Mimosa and all of its cultivars up and send them all back to Asia where they belong. It's a definite toughie when a plant is so intoxicatingly beautiful as is the Mimosa. The Tree of Heaven and White Mulberry trees also come to mind in the same league. I am of the opinion that true gardners are stewards to the land to ensure that future generations of gardeners are able to continue forward sharing the same passion and love of gardening.

I will bow to you superior knowledge on these things .....I only know beauty of them....I know they will invade if not controlled but I had no Idea they did all these other bad things....I destroyed one today and I will get rid of the rest before I stop gardening....I do not want to leave that for someone else....I am remembering now that my Dad a farmer hated them with a passion and had a fit when I planted one. years ago.......needless to say he removed it.....So you win............now if you can tell me how to get rid of all the little sweet gums that are coming up out of the ground from the root system of a tree lost to the storm ......I will be grateful.....I cut them down and they come right back.....I did not want to use any poison on them......our drainage runs to the ditch to the creek then to thecanal and then to the Peal River......That is my problem plant right now....shirleyt

Hey Shirley, my knowledge is anything but superior. You just happened to hit upon a tree with which I have more familiarity than most.

My husband and I aren't farmers but I haven't met one I didn't like yet. They're struggling out there. This morning I stopped and talked to one guy who took me over by his new fields and showed me Miscanthus coming up every where. He looked totally depressed. I feel for him. There's a new subdivision about a half a mile away from him and many of the homes have... Miscanthus in their landscape designs.

When you cut down your Mimosa, please paint the stump with appropriate chemicals or it will come back to bite you in the butt ten fold. You could use glyphosate (Roundup) or triclopyr (Brush BGon). Just cut the tree down to about 18" and literally paint the stump. If it suckers back up you can take another swipe at the stump knocking it down to 12" and repaint it. They ususally don't sucker back up a third time. Just make sure you give yourself some space to retreat by not cutting it down level with the ground. Sweet Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) is a lot like Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) in that these trees can be a real nuisance. You can handle destroying these the same way I suggested you destroy the Silk Tree/Mimosa and the same chemicals should work. These particular trees are known for coming back to haunt you so leave yourself enough stump to come back and retreat. If the tree that you lost to the storm doesn't have enough stump to cut back and treat, take a 1/4" drill and drill all around the perimeter of the trunk getting as close to the cambium layer as is possible. You want to drill down about 4". Fill those holes by pouring chemical down them. Drill new holes and fill them in 10 days. If that doesn't work, take a cheap old tarp and cut a slit in it. Wrap that around these sprouts and spray them with Brush B-Gon. Let it dry and remove the tarp. You'll get them. They're not easy but you'll win.

I know you don't like using chemicals. By applying them the way I described, you are minimizing their impact on the environment and reducing your stress level because these plants will sooner or later die. Basically, with a little paint brush you control where the chemical goes. As far as chemicals go, glyphosate is a short life chemical. You could probalby plant a new tree right next to one you are killing the same day you paint the stump and there would be no ill effects on your new planting. Even when I have had to spray an area with RoundUp, I can plant in that area in about 10 without losing any plants. Triclopyr is not as short lived as glyphosate but I find it knocks down some species better the first time around when painting stumps. Again, you are controlling where the chemical goes and you are reducing the amount you need to use by applying this way.

Best wishes to you, Lauren

This message was edited Aug 29, 2006 11:43 PM

Shirltyt, I agree with you on the fact that mimosa can be beautiful trees, especially when in flower. But, mother nature did not intend on them to be here. I believe they are native to Australia. My great-grandmother planted chinese privet here on my property (which was then hers) because she thought it was such a nice shrub. Now 40 years later I am constantly having to try to get rid of it. I don't blame her because back in those days they didn't know much about invasive plants. But now with the knowledge that I have from the internet, I know what not to plant. I have seen people planting the dreadful paulownia tree here in my area to replace trees lost to hurricanes. Paulownias are super fast growing and have pretty flowers, but they reproduce at a super fast rate too. Learn the invasives to your area and the spread your knowledge to others. Everytime I talk someone out of planting a bradford pear or paulownia, I feel a sense of accomplishment.

I must add that just because a plant is not native does not mean that it is invasive. Camelias for example, are from China but hardly ever reproduce in North America. If you see a plant that you like at a nursery, write down the name of the plant and type it in the google search bar along with the word invasive. If multiple websites pop up that say its invasive, it's best to pass it up.

Oh my goodness escambiaguy, where ever did you learn how highly invasive Bradford Pears and all other Calleryana Pears were ;)

About 90% of what I have learned came from right here on DG.

Me too, escambiaguy. Learning fast and spreading the word. Lauren's a good teacher.

I guess I do not have the proper definition of invasive....I do not think of where a plant comes from....just do I like it....I find the most invasive things on this corner...are sweet gums......a black cherry tree.....oaks.... morning glory...crab apples...mulberrys.....cypress plants poison Ivy creeping virginia....those are the things I fight to control and that was my definition of invasive...things that take over if not controlled .Oh yes tung oils here get way out of hand.....impossible....but oh so pretty when in bloom.... and on an on....I thought it was a matter of control....when I moved here there were four mimmosa now there are five 30 years later....I do not see them on the surrounding land....I do see that my large Magnolias have set up shop on the land on the other side of the road in a big way..... I always say "What do I know" Bradford Pears???????Lantana?????? what should I be planting????????I have to start over after Katrina.....I have to redo a three acre plot of country land..... shirleyt deviant designer....... Help..........

While sweetgums and black cherries do reproduce at a rapid rate, I can't call them invasive because they were already here before we were. When I say "we" I typically mean anyone that is not native American. We may do things to make these trees more weedy such as removing competition and disturbing the soil, but I don't see how something can invade an area that it has always occupied. When a native plant is a nuisance to me I usually just call it weedy or persistant, but not invasive.

Since you are starting from scratch, why don't you start by getting the Latin names of the plants you are interested in planting. Common names will result in lots of grief. Take the mulberry you mentioned above for example... the Red Mulberry is threatened and endangered in many areas of our Country because it can't compete with the Asian White Mulberry. Without even knowing the Latin name of the plant you are having a problem with... my guess is Morus alba. That plant was really marketed well and demand was created for it a while ago. Remember, the most popular plants that are being marketed and pushed are often times exotic species that aren't well behaved. There si a forum here called Trees & Shrubs. There is also a forum here called Garden Foes. Before you buy a plant, why don't you consider visiting those two forums and listing the plants you are interested in. You'll save yourself a lot of time and aggravation in the future cleaning up your property.

ok so you are speaking of invasive as a whole to the USA...I am thinking small (My corner) and the word to me is "tends to spread" In the spring black cherries are in my lawn by the thousands......sweet gums are here right now by the hundreds in the area of where there stumps were ground about a month ago...I have cut them twice and they are a foot high again....and yes I will have to get the round up after them...I hate that though....but a person has to do what they have to do...I do not want a bunch of sweet gums in my yard ......I was trying to get rid of them....the tops just pop out in a storm and if you have large ones you are in trouble...three had to go because of it......and I wish I could get rid of everyone on this corner... I will but it will take a while....shirleyt

Although many of the plants that are invasive by me will also be invasive by you, there will be plants that are invasive that are "unique" to your area. Speaking of which, you might want to add your zone to your user profile. That helps a little bit.

You really need to consider getting the Latin names as a starting point. That was the single greatest thing I got in the habit of doing. Now when I take photos of plants, if there is a plant stake or a plant tag... I take a photo of that too. I don't go out there buying with wild abandon any longer because I was creating way too much work for myself.

Sweet Gums are native and they fill a niche in the environment but too much of a good thing is not exactly a good thing. Waste yours, there's no shortage.

This is the mulberry I have....what is it ...we had two ancient ones here for years.....I remember one since I was a child .....they were loved controlled and lost to storms....babies pop up and are cut down. I need to decide what to do now cut the babies or is this the rare one.....I could not tell.....shirleyt

Shirleyt:

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but that sure looks for all the world like a Sassafras. Could you take a side view shot of it? And maybe of some of the other seedlings you have around?

That's Sassafras albidum. That's a high quality plant but again if there's too much of it, there's too much of it.

really,,,,ok I just was so sure because they always popped up under the mulberrys and .....I know it makes a tree if left alone my mulberry tree was old and.....It made berries ....no doubts there...However I smashed a leaf and the baby has a nice smell that I would expect a sassafras to have.....So I guess it is not an option to replace the old one I just lost.....another note there are none at the old stump site.....I would expect them to be there...but they are at least 15 feet from the old stump zone....It has been ground away and is now a pile of mulch.... It is much to hot now to go out for another pic....I have researched again and it is definitely sassafras....I assumed and we know I should not do that....It never mattered to me before...now I am sad because I really wanted to plant a baby back in the same place....shirleyt thanks

Don't feel bad at all. That's silly. I've been "so sure" before too. We all have. No biggie.

I've gotten in the habit of holding out to get a positive identification before I "waste" a plant these days. Some mistakes are just not fun enough to want to repeat and I most certainly have misidentified seedlings and ripped out quality plants before only to have a friend come over and ask, "What did ya rip the abc or xyz out for". It happens.

ok help me with this and I promise to go away...I found this coming out of the area where the oldest (at least 100 years old mulberry tree lived) I wish I had a pic but I would have to go through lots of old pictures....Did I get lucky or is this a no go too..... shirleyt

Oh please don't go away. You're a breath of fresh air as well as fun.

I can't hardly see your image though. Could you please take it outside and photograph it where you photographed the last leaves please?

I tried to get a bett pic,,,the yellow flies ate me up ...so needless to say I did not spend much time with this. It has morning glory climbing around it so the bloom stems you see are that....not the plant....It looks like it is fixing to bloom but from past experience I know it is just making more leaves.....I hope it is mulberry so bad.... If not I have not a clue...It does not start up like the sassafras and is in a completely different area....coming out of the old stump zone....thanks for you help.....shirleyt

oh yes one more thing...I have been cutting it down for years......which explains why it is this size....this is spring until now growth....shirleyt

I found this picture of red mulberry leaves. The middle one does match yours.

I did find this one of white mulberry however, and it also matches yours. White mulberry is the asian one that is invasive.

Whoa, here are links to the Mulberry leaves with which I have familiarity-
http://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/herbarium/trees/moralb_branch01.jpg
http://people.brandeis.edu/~orlove/field_bio/images/ap_white_mulberry_lobedleaf.jpg

What you have there certainly looks as if it is from the Moraceae
family but which one it is would be beyond me. Try maybe Morus australis?

I think it looks like the red.....I know if it is from the old mulberry....It is very old...It was a giant tree when I used to pass by here every day going to school.....I am 66 so to be as large as it was then it had to be a grown tree then.....It was on the decline for years before a storm toppled it.... about five years ago..... we hated to see it go.... the top had popped out in other storms but it always put out new growth and over came it....the one we lost to Katrina was a diffferent type....the berries were not as sweet as the old tree..and had rounded leaves.......There was only the two of them here......this homestead dates back to the early twenties, I am sure that they were planted when the old magnolias were planted when my great great uncle established this place....I think it will be cool to replace the landscape trees like he had them......It alway looked and was so cool and shady here..... not anymore... Katraina devastated this corner.....shirleyt

No, I'm realtively confident what you have photographed is not Morus rubra. It may very well be in the same family but that is not Red Mulberry.

well thank you for you help ....I am just going to see what happens this year and then decide....shirleyt