Index of Species Information
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
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| Creative Commons image by Karan A. Rawlins, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org. |
Introductory
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION:
Van Deelen, Timothy R. 1991. Baccharis halimifolia. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online].
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station,
Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/shrub/bachal/all.html [].
Updates: On 16 February 2018, the common name of this species was changed in FEIS from: groundsel-tree
to: eastern baccharis. Images were also added.
ABBREVIATION:
BACHAL
SYNONYMS:
Baccharis halimifolia var. angustior D.C.
Baccharis halimifolia var. halimifolia [14,30]
SCS PLANT CODE:
BAHA
COMMON NAMES:
eastern baccharis
groundsel-tree
groundsel-bush
silverling
sea myrtle
salt bush
buckbrush
consumption weed
TAXONOMY:
The scientific name for eastern baccharis is Baccharis halimifolia L.
(Asteraceae) [14,30].
Baccharis is a genus of over 400 dioecious plants native only to the
western hemisphere; 21 are found in the United States [4].
LIFE FORM:
Shrub
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS:
No special status
OTHER STATUS:
NO-ENTRY
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION:
Eastern baccharis grows along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America
from Texas to Massachusetts. It is most common on the southeastern
Coastal Plain, growing as far inland as Arkansas and the central
Piedmont Plateau. It grows in penninsular Florida, Mexico, and the West
Indies as well [5,6,7,15].
 |
| Distribution of eastern baccharis. 1977 USDA, Forest Service map digitized by Thompson and others [33]. |
ECOSYSTEMS:
FRES12 Longleaf - slash pine
FRES13 Loblolly - shortleaf pine
FRES14 Oak - pine
FRES16 Oak - gum - cypress
FRES41 Wet grasslands
STATES:
CT DE FL GA MD MA NJ NY NC RI
SC TX MEXICO
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS:
NO-ENTRY
KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS:
K078 Southern cordgrass prairie
K080 Marl - everglades
K090 Live oak - sea oats
K091 Cypress savanna
K092 Everglades
K105 Mangrove
K112 Southern mixed forest
K113 Southern floodplain forest
K114 Pocosin
K116 Subtropical pine forest
SAF COVER TYPES:
71 Longleaf pine
81 Loblolly pine
82 Loblolly pine - hardwood
85 Slash pine - hardwood
89 Live oak
98 Pond pine
101 Baldcypress
SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES:
NO-ENTRY
HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES:
Detailed descriptions of eastern baccharis plant communities are lacking.
When present, overstory associates include loblolly pine (Pinus taeda),
longleaf pine (P. palustris), and slash pine (P. elliottii) [12].
Common understory associates include marsh elder (Iva frutescens),
switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), and rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos)
[23].
MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE:
Grelen [12] lists eastern baccharis as a "desirable" browse species for
white-tailed deer, although it probably has little or no value for other
wildlife species and may be toxic to some [4]. Laboratory tests on mice
and chicks indicate that ingestion of more than 2 percent of an animal's
body weight in eastern baccharis foliage may be toxic. Visible symptoms of
eastern baccharis poisoning range from mild depression followed by recovery
to extreme listlessness and stupor followed by death. The toxic
compound in groundsel-bush attacks the hepatic and circulatory systems
[7].
PALATABILITY:
Eastern baccharis is unpalatable to cattle and often displaces more
palatable forage [4].
NUTRITIONAL VALUE:
NO-ENTRY
COVER VALUE:
Eastern baccharis provides emergency cover for muskrats when storm tides
sweep through southern Louisiana salt marshes [18].
VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES:
Eastern baccharis's tolerance of salt spray [20] and rapid colonization of
disturbed sites [21] may make it useful for disturbed site
rehabilitation in some situations. More often, it is considered a weed.
One eastern-Texas native-prairie restoration project reported that the
presence of invading eastern baccharis reduced forb diversity [13].
OTHER USES AND VALUES:
Hardiness, freedom from disease, and attractive fall foliage make
eastern baccharis an attractive ornamental. It may aggravate hay fever
symptoms for some people [4].
OTHER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS:
Baccharis species are problem weeds of rangelands, pastures, parks,
recreational areas, and floodplains. Mowing and broadleaf herbicide
treatments at 1- to 3-year intervals may provide control, although such
control methods are often not cost-effective. Phytophagous Brazilian
insects have been successfully used to control introduced Baccharis
species in Australia. Similar techniques show promise for use in the
United States [4].
BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Eastern baccharis is a much-branched, common shrub that seldom exceeds 16
feet (5 m) in height or 6 inches (16 cm) d.b.h. [5,6]. Its leaves are
toothed, alternate, deciduous, and borne on green twigs [6].
Eastern baccharis leaves secrete a sticky resin, thought to deter herbivory
by all but the most specialized insects [15].
The unisexual, yellow flowers are borne on heads surrounded by bracts.
The fruit is a small achene tipped with straight bristles.
Eastern baccharis is dioecious and display some sexual dimorphism,
although positive sexual classification of the plant requires flower
examination. Male plants generally have longer shoots, more tender
leaves, grow faster, and flower and senesce earlier than female plants
[15].
RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM:
Phanerophyte
REGENERATION PROCESSES:
Seedling establishment is the primary method of eastern baccharis
regeneration. Its flowers are wind pollinate, and its seeds are wind
dispersed [15,22]. DeLoach and others [4] reported that eastern baccharis
will resprout if clipped above the ground, although descriptions of
vegetative reproduction are lacking. Seedlings require 2 years of
growth after germination before reproduction can occur [21].
SITE CHARACTERISTICS:
Detailed descriptions of eastern baccharis site requirements are lacking.
General descriptions indicate that eastern baccharis grows in moist sites
on soils with a high organic content including pond and bay margins,
swamps, wet prairies, marshes, raised portions of salt marshes, and
everglades hammocks [2,6,8,27]. It also grows on anthropogenic sites,
such as fencerows and abandoned fields [5,15]. Descriptions of
eastern baccharis as an early invader of interdune swales [2,6] suggest
that organic content is less important than high moisture content for
eastern baccharis establishment. Growth in salt marshes and brackish
southeastern Louisiana swamps indicate a high salt tolerance [6,17,24].
SUCCESSIONAL STATUS:
Eastern baccharis is an early successional, woody invader of disturbed
lowlands throughout its range [27]. It replaces sawgrass (Cladium
spp.), freshwater marsh, and marl, wet prairie communities following
drainage in southern Florida [27,29]. It is characteristic of cut-over
and partially drained, deep-water swamps in southeastern Louisiana [23].
Overgrazing and drainage favor eastern baccharis invasion and convert salt
marshes into shrublands [9].
Despite its early-seral nature, eastern baccharis is shade tolerant. It
persists under a pine canopy and may reach carrying capacity in as
little as 4 years. Self-thinning, graminoid competition, and heavy
litter reduce seedling establishment and maintain a stable stem density.
Disturbance and the creation of overstory gaps stimulate seed
production. Shade tolerance allows eastern baccharis to maintain a pool of
seedlings in the understory until disturbance provides an opportunity
for release and continued regeneration [19].
SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT:
Eastern baccharis flowers from August to October, and their fruit ripen
from October to November [3,6,24]. A population near Gainesville,
Florida, had the following phenological sequence [22]:
Phenological event Time
flower bud appearance late Sept. - Oct.
flowers bloom late Oct. - early Nov.
fruit ripens mid Nov.
leaves drop mid Dec. - late Feb.
dormancy late Nov. - Jan.
FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS:
Eastern baccharis is intolerant of fire and tends to occupy only unburned
sites [11,12]. Postfire colonization depends on proximity of a seed
source and wind dispersal.
FIRE REGIMES:
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under
"Find Fire Regimes".
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY:
Initial-offsite colonizer (off-site, initial community)
FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT:
Most fires probably kill eastern baccharis.
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT:
NO-ENTRY
PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE:
No information was available on eastern baccharis's response to fire at the time this review
was written. The Research Paper by Grace and others provides information on prescribed fire
and postfire response of eastern baccharis and that was not available when this review was written.
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE:
NO-ENTRY
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS:
To predict the contribution of eastern baccharis to fuel load, refer to
Reeves and Lenhart [25] for equations relating basal stem diameter to
dry weight.
REFERENCES
SPECIES: Baccharis halimifolia
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FEIS Home Page
https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/shrub/bachal/all.html
