A wild guess is a Rhododendron, just from the way the leaves relate to one another. It is not Grevillea australis, which has very narrow leaves strongly curled under.
Thanks Betty. Do I need to get some better photos? I'm really curious about this one because there were a couple of them scattered around in the area. Are they are garden escape or a valuable native? They really stand out as odd among everything else growing in the area.
Aaron if possible pick a sample for id - drop in my letter box or leave at landing. I will pass on to Isobel Crawford next door. when you collect a specimen make sure it is big enough and has as many features as possible (I gather from your photos that there are nor flowers/ fruits so leaves must do...). If it is an exotic I'll treat it next opportunity. thanks waltraud
Aaron the leaf shape and colour is not typical for firethorn, I wonder if the leaves may be affected by a rust or other fungus. It looks like the plant was thorny is that right? - it should have orange fruits at this time of year
Thanks Michael, I'll try to get up there soon to get a better look and take some clearer, more definitive photos of possible fruit and/or leaf rust etc.
Hi Michael, I've added two extra photos which show close ups of a small section. There were no fruits on the tree at all and I couldn't find any very obvious signs of rust? But it does look quite stunted for some reason, like it has struggled to properly thrive or something.
Waltraud, sorry I didn't see your message. I have a small sample at my place today which I've added photographs of. This sample might not be big enough for Isobel..
Aaron this is definitely firethorn, a nasty weed from Northern Vietnam (which actually has quite a similar climate to Canberra). In the interests of science you should prick yourself with one of the thorns showing in your new photographs, and wait a few days to feel the fire
Kill! cut&dab with glyphosate. I must have overlooked this one. Aaron if you have the means & know how to treat go ahead otherwise I could use the coordinates to find and treat. The 4 introduced shrub species with spines / thorns that occur on mt majura are Firethorn (various species), African Boxthorn, Hawthorn and Sweet Briar. So always check for spines as shown on photos 3-5. cheers
Done. We haven't treated woody weeds in the area east of the trail and northeast of the small powerline easement - apart from firethorn there are hawthorn, Cootamundra wattle, Briar Rose - we'll tackle the area next season.
Aaron I divided mt majura into blocks and tackle woody weeds block by block. Winter is not a good time as deciduous species such as hawthorn can't be treated - it's more efficient to systematically go through a block when all woody weed species includ the deciduous species are actively growing. I therefore do woody weeds in late summer/autumn ie after the spring/summer treatment of herbaceous weeds such as St John Wort. I noticed a number of hawthorns close to the firethorn that you registered. Fortunately they don't run away so I'll treat them next season. Just for the fun i cut/ dabbed and frilled some close-by Cootamundra wattles.
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