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skunk vine
skunk vice or stinkvine
paederia-foetida, stinkvine or skunk vine
stinkvine distribution in australia

Stinkvine (Paederia foetida)

Stinkvine aka Skunk Vine, is a semi woody perennial, herbaceous vine that quickly creeps across the ground, and roots at the nodes. In NSW, Skunk Vine has been found in several locations in the Greater Sydney region, and in Moreton Bay, QLD. The distribution map is courtesy of The Living Atlas of Australia.
 
 

After you finish reading this, you will be able to:

  • Identify Stinkvine or Skunk Vine.
  • Know the habitat of Stinkvine.
  • Know the best cultural and chemical options to control Stinkvine or Skunk Vine.

Stinkvine is very invasive and able to infest large areas and smother other plants. Its stems are light green, slender, <5 mm diameter, up to 7 m long, with fine, short hairs in lines.

 

 

How to Identify Stinkvine.

Category: Broadleaf (Dicot)

Flower: This weed flowers in late Summer to Autumn, and the flowers have white outsides and purplish-red insides. They are funnel shaped and 7-11 mm long with a cover of soft hairs on their outsides.

Height: Prostrate vine.

Leaf length: The leaves have a heart shape and are 3–14 cm long, with round bases and a pointed tip.

Leaf width: 2-5 cm wide.

Reproduction: It reproduces by seed and stem fragments. Stem fragments can root at the nodes, and spread by people dumping garden waste, or on vehicles or machinery. 

Seed production is variable, and seeds over two years old have poor viability. Seeds are spread by wind over short distances and by vehicles and machinery.
 

Comments: The leaves are on hairy stalks up to 2–5 cm long, green to dark green on top and have a cover of sparse bristly hairs. The under surface of the leaves is light green with veins. Bristly hairs are along the edges. When you crush the leaves they have a foul smell which is believed to be the sulphur-containing compound dimethyl disulphide.

Habitat: Stinkvine tolerates shade, and dry and wet conditions and this includes flood areas. Skunk vine grows in a range of soil types including low nutrient soils, and acidic soils and saline conditions. It has been found in gardens and parks, in sugar cane crops, along roadsides and in pastures.

For more information check out our weed ID Chart.

 
 

 

 

How to control Stinkvine.

You can control this weed by cultural and chemical means.

 
 
 

Cultural control:

Skunk vine’s extensive network of stems, make it difficult to control. You need to repeat any, control measures to be successful. Combining several control options may be the most effective way to kill skunk vine.
 
You can hand pull or dig out seedlings and small plants, and this is easiest when the soil is damp and loose. Try and remove as much of the roots as possible, and do not leave any stems in contact with the soil as they will regrow.
 
 
 

Chemical control:

There are very few chemical control options for this weed. Herbicides are the effective method to control Stinkvine as long as you make multiple treatments to counter basal regrowth.

 
In Florida, both triclopyr and glyphosate control P. foetida (Possley and Brazis, 1998).
 
 
In greenhouse experiments, POST herbicides, including Glyphosate (Rapid Fire 800) on Permit 9907, and triclopyr, give >90% control across all growth stages at 4 months after treatment with no regrowth.
 
 
If you use Glyphosate and water quality is an issue then use ProForce Manta Ray as a tank additive.
 
In PRE trials, prodiamine (Onset 10GR) provides better control than all other PRE herbicides, and reduces shoot weights by 99% and 84%, respectively, in comparison to nontreated controls.
 

 

 
 
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Rapid Fire 800g Glyphosate WDG

Rapid Fire 800SG

$180.00
Rapid Fire 800SG is a non-selective herbicide contains 800g/kg of the active ingredient glyphosate. It controls a wide range of perennial and annual weeds in a range of situations that

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