How to Control Flick Weed in Your Lawn
The battle for a weed-free lawn is one that most home lawn lovers battle year-round, and with the sheer number of invasive weeds looking to share the space with your lawn, ...
Blue Heliotrope is regarded as a highly-competitive, invasive weed that threatens a number of environments including home lawns in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia.
Somewhat distressingly, it’s known as a particularly drought tolerant plant meaning it can outcompete desirable plants all year round and in challenging conditions.
Currently, only a small number of herbicides are registered for the control of Blue Heliotrope and some canno be used on certain grass types, making this invasive species a particularly challenging weed to manage in Australian home lawns.
Blue Heliotrope (Heliotropium amplexicaule) is commonly identified by its sprawling growth, hairy stems, oval-shaped leaves and clusters of small purple-blue flowers with a yellow centre.
This weed is particularly troublesome in warm-season lawns such as Bermuda Grass, Couch, Buffalo and Kikuyu.
Blue Heliotrope thrives in many regions of Australia, especially in dry and semi-arid areas, where warm temperatures and low rainfall create ideal growing conditions. The weed is incredibly competitive and will overrun healthy lawns, leaving them sparse as the weed outcompetes the grass for nutrients.
Blue Heliotrope thrives in warm, dry conditions making it a common problem in drought-prone and semi-arid regions, or home lawns in rural-adjacent urban areas experiencing lower than average rainfall.
It prefers disturbed soils and is often found in areas with poor lawn coverage, and can even flourish in soils with low nutrition and acidic soils, showing just how hardy it is.
The weed spreads primarily through its extensive root system and seed production, with sticky seed heads easily carried by wind, water and foot traffic (by animals or humans) through affected areas.
This rapid dispersal allows Blue Heliotrope to quickly invade lawns, particularly in neglected areas with insufficient turf density.
Hand-pulling Blue Heliotrope can be an effective short-term solution if the infestation is minor. The entire plant, including its deep root system, must be removed before it sets seed to prevent further spread.
However, due to its ability to regrow from root fragments and high seed production, this method is often labour-intensive and only provides temporary relief.
Regular monitoring and prompt removal of new plants are necessary to prevent reinfestation.
Blue Heliotrope might be easily managed with commonly available herbicides, but the only product registered for use on Blue Heliotrope is Indigo Contra M Duo which uses MCPA and Dicamba as its active ingredients.
Whenever you’re choosing a herbicide, it’s important to look beyond the active ingredients and see what the product has been registered for use on, and avoid seeking off-label applications for products.
Contra M Duo is not safe for use on Buffalo lawns.
Most broadleaf weed killers will show efficacy within a week of application, however repeated applications may be necessary for more established plants, or as new seeds germinate.
Once the outbreak is controlled you can look to a pre-emergent herbicide like Spartan, Barricade or Onset GR which will neutralise any seeds in the soil before they germinate, stopping Flick Weed and any other foreign weeds from ruining your perfect lawn.
Most pre-emergents will want to be watered into the soil layer and will provide enduring protection for up to six months, depending on rainfall levels and the climate in your region.
Pre-emergent herbicides are typically applied in Spring to protect your lawn through Spring and Summer, then again at the start of Autumn to protect through Autumn and Winter.
While Blue Heliotrope can prove a difficult weed to manage thanks to its ability to thrive in challenging conditions and the fact that only a small number of herbicides are registered for its management, it’s still possible to curtail a Blue Heliotrope outbreak through the use of targeted herbicides and by maintaining a pre-emergent herbicide barrier. Visit the myhomeTURF online store for a wide variety of herbicides suitable for controlling Blue Heliotrope.