Parsonsia straminea – MONKEY ROPE VINE
Pronounced par-SONS-ee-ah stram-ee-NEE-ah, it is a vigourous woody vine that climbs by twining stems and adventitious roots. The main stem can be up to 9 cm in diameter and eventually, the attractive green leaves which are up to 24cm long, grow high up in the canopy. Small fragrant pale yellow tubular flower clusters are produced through spring, summer and autumn.
The vine provides nectar for the Blue Tiger Butterfly, Swamp Tiger, Varied Eggfly, Blue Triangle, and Varied Dusky-blue. It also provides Butterfly laval food for the Lesser Wanderer and Common Crow Butterflies, and food for native bees and wasps.*
Parsonsia straminea is an excellent choice for attracting butterflies and native bees in your garden. It could be used to cover a fence or a bank but has the potential to smother plants, so needs to be kept in check. If you use a tree as its support and the vine gets too heavy, it is easy to remove by cutting through the main stem. Propagation is by cutting or layering.
*Source: Noosa Native Plants
The PARSONSIA STRAMINEA is by now the BIGGEST PROBLEM according to DPI Fisheries by KILING TREES WIDESPREAD by vigorously growing into the canopy of BIG trees and killing them by weight, out shading them and WORST of all: when mature SPREADING SEEDS BY THE MILLIONS therefor infesting the whole habitat esp of COASTAL areas and RIPARIAN zones. They are native yes, but they belong in deep rainforest where they dont get ultimate sunlight and grow out of control.
Biggest klller of native coastal bushland today, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REMOVE THIS POST NAMING IT PLANT OF THE MONTH. WIth kindness. Juud Belongil
Hi Judith,
Thank you for your comment regarding our “Plant of the Month”.
I think that you may be concerned about the exotic “Moth Vine” and not the native Parsonsia.
The exotic Moth Vine, Aruajia sericifera, can be easily confused with the native Parsonsia and Marsdenia spp. (Silkpod and Milk vines). The exotic Moth Vine is on the NSW DPI Page and is indeed a very serious pest for the reasons that you have indicated.
I am not aware of the similar native vines being regarded as pest species.
If still concerned, please send some images of the plant, leaf, flower and seed pod and we should be able to identify the species.
We are fortunate not to have this pest species at Marcus Beach, it reads as a very serious problem.
Regards,
Adrian.