Why you don’t want a carrotwood in your yard.

Carrotwood is a tree native to Australia, but was introduced into Florida as early as 1955.  As an introduced ornamental tree, it became available from nurseries in 1968.  Unfortunately, by 1990 seedlings began to pop up in areas around Florida.  Carrotwood is now a Category I Invasive capable of “…altering native plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives. This definition does not rely on the economic severity or geographic range of the problem, but on the documented ecological damage caused” according to the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council.  Accordingly, you do not want a carrotwood in your yard.

So, like many invasive plants, carrotwood came in as an invited guest and was actually a recommend tree for several decades.  Too late to turn back, this tree began to spread throughout Florida and eventually became, not just an invasive plant, but a noxious weed listed on the “Florida Noxious Weed List (5b-57.007 FAC) by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in 1999. Plants on the Florida Noxious Weed List may not be introduced, possessed, moved, or released without a permit.” Carrotwood seedlings have a way of just popping up in your landscape and growing in plain sight almost unnoticed.  Birds such as fish crows are known to disperse the seeds in both natural and urban areas.  The seed sprouts, and before too many years have passed, you have an evergreen tree up to thirty-five feet tall. 

To identify a carootwood, look at the eight-inch long, leathery leaves which are compound (pinnate) in shape (multiple -four to twelve - oblong leaflets with a pair at the end) and arranged in an alternate pattern on the branches.  The flowers are very easy to identify as they are clusters of greenish-yellow flowers up to fourteen inches long appearing in January and February.  The subsequent inedible fruits are distinct as well with one-inch capsules.  The fruit capsules ripen in April and May and split open exposing three black seeds and some reddish-yellow residue. 

Besides the seedlings that sprout from fallen seeds in the vicinity of the parent carrotwood tree, the seeds end up in natural areas, pastures and residential landscapes.  I had no problem finding quite a few carrotwood trees at different stages of development here in Port Charlotte from random seedlings to half-grown plants to full sized trees still being used as a shade tree.  Seedling carrotwood trees can be easily hand-picked as needed.  Larger trees can be cut down with the stump immediately treated with triclopyr or glyphosate as per label directions.  Please always read the label, the label is the law.

Look around your yard – you may be harboring a carrotwood!  For more information on all types of invasive trees, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf.

Resources:

Langeland, K. A. & Enloe, S. F. (2015) Natural Area Weeds: Carrotwood (Cupaniopsis anacardioides).  The University of Florida, IFAS.

Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council’s 2015 List of Invasive Plant Species. http://www.fleppc.org/list/2015FLEPPCLIST-LARGEFORMAT-FINAL.pdf