parsley piert - PGG Wrightson

Pasture Weed Watch
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
PARSLEY PIERT
Why is it a weed?
s
It is a competitor of turf and lawn
Where is it found?
All across New Zealand
Is it toxic?
Not that I could find
Alternative uses?
e
Som herbal medicine uses
MILTON MUNRO is a soil and plant
scientist for rural supply company
PGG Wrightson. He looks at common
pasture weeds you’ll find on your
block and how to deal with them.
from its use as a herbal medicine to help
with bladderstones. It was originally
called ‘parsley breakstone’ or ‘parsley
piercestone’, but over time this has been
shortened to parsley piert.
It’s easy to identify in the field (it looks
like parsley! - Alex). It germinates in
autumn and produces a series of small
stems that hug the ground. At the end of
these stems you find the leaves. Each leaf
is made up of three leaflets and each of
these leaflets is split into wee segments.
They look sort of like a little buttercup leaf
(according to Dad). They tend to flower
late in the summer or early in the autumn.
Plants produce their little green flowers
at the base of the leaves and these are
very hard to spot. They produce a lot of
seed and can colonise a lawn very quickly.
Parsley piert prefers dry hungry soils that
are mown very short.
Photo Matthew Crampton PGW
T
his month’s article finds me
working from home. It’s cold,
wet and miserable outside – a
great day to do some office
work in front of the heat
pump. Unfortunately it’s also school
holidays so I have three small agronomists
currently dancing around me exhibiting
various stages of what appears to be cabin
fever. It is only day one of the holidays and
I may not survive, so I have come up with
a brilliant idea to get the work done and
entertain my delightful three – they can
write my article! While I’m napping on the
couch, I will leave you lovely folks in their
small but competent hands. Meet Alex
(10), Mason (8) and Ruby (7).
Today’s weed is parsley piert. Parsley
piert is a small annual weed found all over
New Zealand. It is native to Europe, Asia
and Australia, and belongs to the Rosaceae
family of plants (the Rose family). Parsley
piert is also related to apples, pears,
quinces, apricots, peaches and cherries
(some of my favourite fruits! – Mason).
There are several species of parsley
piert found throughout New Zealand,
and the most common one is Aphanes
inexspectata (not one of us can pronounce
that!).
Parsley piert is a pretty interesting
name. Firstly, it looks like parsley (it sure
does – Ruby). Secondly, its name comes
Photo Matthew Crampton PGW
MILTON MUNRO
HOW TO CONTROL IT
Parsley piert can be quite difficult to
control. It can be hand-weeded out of turf
but this can be a very time-consuming job
and isn’t practical on a large lawn.
What makes it so hard to control is that
it is resistant to most commonly used
herbicides. The only products that have
proved effective in New Zealand are Image
(a mixture of Ioxynil, Bromoxynil and
Mecoprop) or Victory Gold (a mixture of
Picloram and Triclopyr), but you need to
be careful when using these as they can
suppress or damage young turf plants.
Prevention is the best cure. Avoid
creating bare patches in the summer
or autumn as parsley piert loves to
germinate in these, and avoid mowing
your lawn too short as a bit of cover will
prevent parsley piert from germinating.
Dad is waking up so we’d better go and
bug him for the rest of the afternoon.
That’s all from Alex, Mason and Ruby.
Bye! ■
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