PLANT PROTECTION 1 – Pests, Diseases and Weeds

PLANT PROTECTION 1 – Pests, Diseases and Weeds
HEMI-
PARASITES
Hemi-parasites possess chlorophyll and can carry out photosynthesis. Some
hemi-parasites possess roots while others do not.
NATIVE CHERRIES (Exocarpos spp., Santalaceae)
Have chlorophyll.
Have normal roots. Depend on their hosts for water and some nutrients.
Woody shrubs to 5 meters or small trees to 10 meters, parasitic on roots
of host plants, eg eucalypts, wattles. Foliage resembles cypress, casuarina.
Propagated by seed, stem or root cuttings.
Native cherries are not generally a problem in forest, bushland or remnant
vegetation, an exception is Exocarpos strictus which parasitizes Eucalyptus
camaldulensis forests on the central Murray River Valley.
Every 3-4 years
there may be a
big seed set on
native cherry
WESTERN AUSTRALIA CHRISTMAS TREE (Nuytsia floribunda,
Loranthaceae) also known as the Swan River blaze tree. Endemic to WA.
Has chlorophyll.
Has roots. Secures water and certain nutrients by tapping the roots of
adjacent plants.
Small woody tree, may grow up to 10 meters high often in apparent
isolation. Brilliant orange flowers. Parasitic on the roots of grasses and
other plants. Its favored host appears to be Banksia spp.
Reproduces in the wild by suckers, can be propagated by seed, cuttings.
Parasitic flowering plants 379