Sphagneticola trilobata
Common Name(s): Creeping oxeye
Non-Native to Florida
Origin: Central and South America1
Introduction to Florida: pre-19332
This species appears on the following legally prohibited plant lists
UF/IFAS Assessment of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas
CATEGORY II on the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council’s (FLEPPC) 2017 List of Invasive Plant Species
Download a recognition card (PDF) from Invasive and Non-native Plants You Should Know3
Download a page (PDF) from Identification and Biology of Nonnative Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas – Second Edition1
Control information: Integrated Management of Nonnative Plants in Natural Areas of Florida (EDIS publication SP 242)4
Wedelia
Management Plan
Introduction
Wedelia is a common weed problem in many parts of Florida. Introduced from tropical America, wedelia has been used in the landscape as a groundcover. People like wedelia because of its beautiful flowers and its fast growth habit. Quick to form a thick groundcover, wedelia is a Category II invasive in Florida. It is also considered a serious weed in agricultural settings in other countries.
Description
Wedelia is a mat forming perennial herb with rounded stems. Leaves are fleshy, usually 2 to 4 inches long and 1 to 5 inches wide, with irregularly toothed margins. Flowers are solitary, one inch in diameter and yellow-orange in color. New plants arise from nodes that root at the soil surface. Seed production is low and generally does not reproduce prolifically via seed. However, wedelia is able to escape from gardens to nearby areas via runners and fragmentation.
Impacts
Wedelia typically invades agricultural areas, along roadsides and trails, along streams, waste places, and disturbed sites. A dense thicket of vegetation forms which crowds out native and other plant species. This prevents regeneration and growth of desired species.
Management
Preventative
The first step in preventative control of wedelia is to limit the planting and removal of existing plants within the landscape. Take care when dumping vegetation to prevent the regeneration and spread.
Cultural
Plant native or non-invasive alternatives.
Mechanical
Mowing or slashing of wedelia infested areas should be avoided. This may cause the development of new plants. Uproot the weed from the areas where it grows, followed by an application of glyphosate on the infested area. The sites will need to be rechecked to insure that it has been successfully eradicated, and sprays applied to the whole site when any plants are found. Young seedlings and small plants may be hand pulled, but be sure to remove roots and rhizomes.
Biological
Wedelia spp. has no known biological control agents.
Chemical
Small patches may be treated with a 2% solution of glyphosate while large, dense populations may require a 5% solution. Follow-up treatments should be conducted as needed. Triclopyr at 1-2% is also effective.
References and Useful Links
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Plants Database
Invasive Plants of the Eastern United States
University of Florida Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants
University of Florida’s Cooperative Extension Electronic Data Information Source
Langeland, K.A. and K. Craddock Burks. 1998. Identification and Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas. IFAS Publication SP 257. University of Florida,
Gainesville. 165 pp.
The Plant Conservation Alliance’s Alien Plant Working Group. Weeds Gone Wild: Alien Plant Invaders of Natural Areas
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER). Plant Threats to Pacific Ecosystems
Excerpted from
University of Florida, IFAS Extension, Circular 1529, Invasive Species Management Plans for Florida, 2008 by
Greg MacDonald, Associate Professor Jay Ferrell, Assistant Professor and Extension Weed Specialist
Brent Sellers, Assistant Professor and Extension Weed Specialist
Ken Langeland, Professor and Extension Weed Specialist Agronomy Department, Gainesville and Range Cattle REC, Ona
Tina Duperron-Bond, DPM – Osceola County
Eileen Ketterer-Guest, former Graduate Research Assistant
Description modified January 2014 using Citation #1 below
More Resources
View the herbarium specimen image from the University of Florida Herbarium Digital Imaging Projects.
Citations
1. Identification and Biology of Nonnative Plants in Florida’s Natural Areas – Second Edition, by K.A. Langeland, H.M. Cherry, et al. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 257. 2008.
2. Strangers in Paradise, Impact and Management of Nonindigenous Species in Florida, Chapter 2: Florida’s Invasion by Nonindigenous Plants: History, Screening, and Regulation, by D.R. Gordon and K.P. Thomas, pp. 21-37. Island Press, Washington, DC, 1997.
3. Invasive and Non-native Plants You Should Know – Recognition Cards, by A. Richard and V. Ramey. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 431. 2007.
4. Integrated Management of Nonnative Plants in Natural Areas of Florida, by K. A. Langeland, J. A. Ferrell, B. Sellers, G. E. MacDonald, and R. K. Stocker. University of Florida-IFAS Publication # SP 242. 2011.