Psoralea pinnata

Dally pine

Family: Fabaceae

Origin: South Africa

Scattered purple flowers all over the dally pine tree.
Dally pine is a short lived tree/shrub but it produces many long-lived seeds.
Photo credit: Andrea Julian

Regional Pest Management Plan (RPMP) status

  • Whole region — Sustained control
  • Hauraki Gulf Controlled Area Notice pest

View more about the RPMP statuses

General description

Many-branched, evergreen perennial shrub or small tree < 5 m tall. Twigs are ribbed and hairy. Leaves are < 4 cm long and pinnate, with thin leaflets. Flowers are pea-shaped, blue/white or mauve/white, and borne in November – January. Pods are wrinkled and elliptic.

What you need to know

To help protect our environment, from 1 September 2021, you:

  • will not be allowed to breed, distribute, release or sell dally pine within the Auckland region.
  • will not be allowed to plant dally pine within the Auckland region, unless you are transferring an existing plant on your land to another location within the boundaries of the same property.
  • must destroy any dally pine on land that you occupy if it has been planted in breach of the above rules and you are directed to do so by an authorised person.

Habitats

Open sites, roadsides, track edges, scrub, coastal areas, gullies, forest and riparian margins, swamp edges, gumlands, wasteland, pasture.

Dispersal

Seeds dispersed by gravity, water and possibly by livestock and birds. Human-mediated dispersal through movement of contaminated soil.

Impact on environment

Follow up treated areas 3 times per year. Encourage natural regeneration of native plants or replant treated areas where possible after 2-3 treatments to establish dense ground cover and minimise reinvasion.

Control

Site Management

Follow up treated areas 3 times per year. Encourage natural regeneration of native plants or replant treated areas where possible after 2-3 treatments to establish dense ground cover and minimise reinvasion.

Recommended approaches

Physical control

Method: Dig out.

Plant parts requiring disposal: Seed.

Disposal options: Remove to greenwaste or landfill if practical.

Biocontrol

Biocontrol is currently not available for this species.

Community agrichemical control recommendations

No qualifications: Cut stump and paste freshly cut base of stems with glyphosate gel. Cut stump and spray freshly cut base of stems with 100ml glyphosate green per 1L of water. Foliar spray seedlings with 20ml glyphosate green per 1L of water.

Basic Growsafe certified: Drill and inject trees with 500ml glyphosate per 1L of water if safe to do so. Drill 18mm holes (tangentially angled downwards) in a spiral up the trunk.

For 50mm stems drill one hole. For 100mm stems drill two holes. For larger stems drill holes 150mm apart.

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Caution: When using any herbicide or pesticide please read the label thoroughly to ensure that all instructions and safety requirements are followed.

A dally pine tree with thin leaves and purple flowers.
The flowers are pea-like blue-white or mauve-white flowers 13mm diameter.
Photo credit: Andrea Julian