''Senecio tamoides'', also known as Canary creeper, is a

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...

member of the genus ''

Senecio ''Senecio'' is a genus of flowering plants in the daisy family (Asteraceae) that includes ragworts and groundsels. Variously circumscribed taxonomically, the genus ''Senecio'' is one of the largest genera of flowering plants. Description Morp ...

'' of the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

that is native to

Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...

. It is used as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

for its showy yellow, daisy-like flowers in autumn.

Description

It is a fast-growing, scrambling mostly evergreen perennial climber with semi-succulent stems and leaves that creeps along the ground or climbs several meters into the trees to reach the sunlit canopy where it can flower.Senecio tamoides DC.
by Cheris Viljoen from PlantZAfrica.com It grows up to a height of to tall, though it can be as much as tall in the right conditions.

Stems and leaves

Its stems are slender, to in diameter, usually purplish, semi-succulent and hairless that have a clear and sticky

exudate An exudate is a fluid emitted by an organism through pores or a wound, a process known as exuding or exudation. ''Exudate'' is derived from ''exude'' 'to ooze' from Latin ''exsūdāre'' 'to (ooze out) sweat' (''ex-'' 'out' and ''sūdāre'' 'to ...

. Leaves are bright green,

palmate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

ly lobed with venation, shaped like many

ivy ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and ...

with broad, oval and fleshy surfaces, long and wide, coarsely toothed edges, leaf stalks to long.

Flowers

Its inflorescence is many-headed, bright yellow, and the flowering spike grows to have a flat top. The flower heads are cylindrical, about in diameter; surrounded with a whorl of five to seven

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

s, to long which are surrounded by two to four smaller bracts or bracteoles. Flowers are

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...

-scented and would appear from autumn to winter. Three to six ray

floret This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

s; each

ligule A ligule (from "strap", variant of ''lingula'', from ''lingua'' "tongue") is a thin outgrowth at the junction of leaf and leafstalk of many grasses (Poaceae) and sedges. A ligule is also a strap-shaped extension of the corolla, such as that of a ...

approximately long; ten to twelve disc florets, to long. When cultivated in the gardens of the National Museums of Kenya, it has orange florets.

Fruits and reproduction

Achenes about long, and not hairy; pappus to long. It grows easily from stem cuttings.

Similar species

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, ''Senecio tamoides'' has been misapplied and is usually considered to be '' Senecio angulatus'' since the two species bear a striking resemblance, though ''S. tamoides'' (Canary creeper) has leaves that are comparatively softer, lighter greened, more ivy-like, less glossier and more toothed. Moreover, Canary creeper has

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s that are slightly more elongated, about 10 mm long, compared to those of ''S. angulatus'', which are 6–9 mm long. ''

Delairea ''Delairea'' is a plant genus within the family Asteraceae that is native to South Africa. Classified within the tribe Senecioneae, it contains only one species, ''Delairea odorata'', which was previously included in the genus ''Senecio'' as ''Se ...

'' (formerly ''Senecio mikanioides''), a related vine in the

Senecioneae Senecioneae is the largest tribe of the Asteraceae, or the sunflower family, comprising over 150 genera and over 3,500 species. Almost one-third of the species in this tribe are placed in the genus ''Senecio''. Its members exhibit probably the w ...

tribe, is also similar looking, but features small ear-shaped appendages at the base of the stalks of the leaves and flowers that lack obvious petals, whereas both ''S. angulatus'' and ''S. tamoides'' have daisy-like flowers with several petals. Unlike ''S. angulatus'', which is more of a scrambler, ''S. tamoides'' and ''Delairea'' grow like typical vines where they intertwine and attach themselves on objects as they climb.

Cultivation

It is a drought-tolerant, fast-growing garden plant that grows in full sun and in well-drained soil towards a wall or fence, and may need some regular

plant food A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil ...

for robust growth and abundant flowering. Its long stems require support to climb, such as on a

trellis Trellis may refer to: Structures * Trellis (architecture), an architectural structure often used to support plants (especially vineyards) * Trellis drainage pattern, a drainage system Technology * Trellis (graph), a special kind of graph used ...

or a

pergola A pergola is most commonly an outdoor garden feature forming a shaded walkway, passageway, or sitting area of vertical posts or pillars that usually support cross-beams and a sturdy open lattice, often upon which woody vines are trained. The ...

. It can also be allowed to naturally creep through other shrubs or by planting beside a tree, leaving it to ascend by itself. The plant's growing tips should receive full sunshine for the flowers to develop, though the base can tolerate full shade. Although naturally evergreen, it may be semi-deciduous in places that have frosty winters where it would die back and recover again in spring. It can be

pruned Pruning is a horticultural, arboricultural, and silvicultural practice involving the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. The practice entails the ''targeted'' removal of diseased, damaged, dead, ...

once in a while to maintain its spread in the garden. It can be grown from seed in spring, or from stem cuttings in summer.

Distribution

It is native to southern Africa where it occurs from the

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...

to eastern

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

, as well as in parts of the forests in

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

and areas along the escarpment. It grows along evergreen forest margins at altitudes of to and in moist gullies. The plant has been introduced to Southeast Brazil,

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

and

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

Invasiveness

In Australia, it is sparingly found in moist gullies in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, the

North Coast North Coast or Northcoast may refer to : Antigua and Barbuda * Major Division of North Coast, a census division in Saint John Parish Australia *New South Wales North Coast, a region Canada *The British Columbia Coast, primarily the communiti ...

and

South Coast South Coast is a name often given to coastal areas to the south of a geographical region or major metropolitan area. Geographical Australia *South Coast (New South Wales), the coast of New South Wales, Australia, south of Sydney * South Coast (Q ...

of New South Wales, and southeast

, after escaping from the garden as an ornamental plant due to its seeds being dispersed by wind and parts of its stems being spread in disposed garden waste. It is a species of concern in south-eastern Queensland, where it was ranked in a list that contains 100 most invasive species in the region. As such, the plant is listed on a few local weed lists in south-eastern QLD – It is a pest plant in

Redland Shire Redland City, better known as the Redlands and formerly known as Redland Shire, is a local government area and a part of the Brisbane metropolitan area in South East Queensland. With a population of 156,863 in June 2018, the city is spread alo ...

, an invasive plant in Gold Coast City, an unwelcome species in

Burnett Shire The Shire of Burnett was a local government area located in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia. It surrounded, but did not include, the regional city of Bundaberg, and covered an area of . It existed as a local government ent ...

, a significant non-declared pest plant in

Maroochy Shire The Shire of Maroochy was a local government area about north of Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast region of South East Queensland, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed as a local government entity from 1890 until 2008, when it ...

, and an unwanted species in

Caboolture Shire The Shire of Caboolture was a local government area located in the Australian state of Queensland on the northern urban fringe of the capital, Brisbane, and south of the Sunshine Coast. The Shire covered an area of , of which approximately o ...

. However, these reports may have incorrectly applied the ''S. tamoides'' name to ''Senecio angulatus'', since the two are often confused with each other. Further,

Atlas of Living Australia The Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) is an online repository of information about Australian plants, animals, and fungi. Development started in 2006. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an organisation sign ...

has misapplied ''S. tamoides'' for its ''D. odorata'' observations in Australia. Occurrence records of Senecio tamoides.
Atlas of Living Australia.

Gallery

File:Senecio tamoides2.jpg, Clusters of golden flowers File:Senecio tamoides 3.jpg, Butterfly

pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, birds ...

File:Senecio tamoides4.jpg, Trailing on a

barbed wire A close-up view of a barbed wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire, is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the strands. Its primary use is t ...

File:Senecio tamoides variegata.jpg, Variegated variety File:Senecio tamoides5.jpg, Full view of plant File:Asteraceae1.jpg, Growing on a fence File:Senecio tamoides.png, Leaves and flowers File:Senecio tamoides flower.jpg, Potted houseplant File:Senecio tamoides flowers.jpg, Flowers File:Seneciotamoides.jpg, Shrubby habit with flowers

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7450429 tamoides Creepers of South Africa Vines Garden plants of Africa Ornamental plants Plants described in 1838