Common crupina
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Status of common crupina in Tasmania
(Crupina vulgaris)
- Common crupina is a declared weed in Tasmania under the Tasmanian Weed Management Act 1999. The importation, sale and distribution of common crupina are prohibited in Tasmania.
- The legal responsibilities of landholders and other stakeholders in dealing with common crupina are laid out in the Common Crupina Statutory Weed Management Plan.
What does common crupina look like?
- Common
crupina is an erect and slender annual herb growing to 1 metre tall.
The stems are ridged and bear short stiff spines. The cotyledon leaves
(the first leaves growing from the seed) are fleshy and purplish-red.
The rosette leaves are entire but with toothed margins, while the stem
leaves are divided into lacy leaflets with short stiff spines on the
margins. The daisy-like flowers are lavender to purple and occur on
stalks. An individual plant may produce up to 40 flower heads. Each
flower produces 1 to 5 cylindrical tapering seeds covered in silvery
hairs and with a dark stiff pappus or tuft of hair.
- Seed
germination occurs mainly in autumn with the onset of cooler weather.
The plant overwinters as a rosette (a whorl of leaves close to the
ground), then bolts and produces its flowering stems as temperatures
rise. Flowers form in late spring and summer, the rosette leaves
shrivelling during this period. Seeds remain dormant until the following
autumn.
- Spread is by seed, with most seed germinating in the
first autumn after shedding. Seed can be spread short distances by wind,
with longer distance dispersal by moving water, birds, wildlife and
domestic stock. Seed can also be spread as a contaminant of hay or other
fodder.


Image top right: Common crupina rosettes, photo: CDFA 2001
Images above: Flower and seeds of common crupina, photos: CDFA 2001
Impacts of common crupina
- Common crupina is a serious pasture and roadside weed.
Where does common crupina occur?
- Common crupina is a native of northern African, temperate Asia and Europe. Common crupina has naturalised at only one site on mainland Australia, at Hope Valley, South Australia.
- Common crupina does not occur in Tasmania.
What you need to do
- If you locate common crupina anywhere in Tasmania, or if you find a plant that you think could be common crupina, immediately contact your Regional Weed Management Officer on 1300 368 550 to report this weed.
See also
Common Crupina Statutory Weed Management Plan
Weed Links and Resources
Other useful links
Pest Genie
APVMA
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