Mikania cordata (Burm. f.) B. L. Rob., Asteraceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Eupatorium cordatum Burm. f.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: jia ze lan

English: heartleaf hempvine, mile-a-minute

French: liane Pauline, liane marzoge, liane raisin

Kwara‘ae: kwalo ngingilo

Samoan: fue saina, fue sega

Habit:  vine

Description:  "A fast growing, creeping or twining, perennial vine; stems branched, pubescent to glabrous, ribbed, from 3 to 6 m long; leaves opposite, cordate or triangular-ovate, blade 3 to 12 cm long, 2 to 6 cm wide, on a slender petiole 1 to 8 cm long, base broadly cordate, tip acuminate, margins crenate, dentate, or entire, surfaces nearly glabrous, three- to seven-veined from base; flowers in small heads in open, nearly flat-topped (corymbose) panicles; axillary and terminal heads 6 to 9  mm long, four-flowered; involucral bracts four, obtuse or acute, 5 to 6 mm long, glabrous or subglabrous with one additional smaller bract about 3 mm long; corolla white or yellowish white, about 5 mm long; anthers bluish gray or grayish black; style white; fruit an achene, linear-oblong, 2 to 3 mm long, five angled, blackish brown, glandular; pappus of 40 to 45 bristles, about 4 mm long, white at first, reddish afterwards.  May be distinguished by the following characteristics: 40 to 45 reddish pappus bristles, corollas white, and heads 7 to 7.5 mm long (usually longer than those in M. micrantha, which are 4.5 to 6 mm long)" (Holm et al., 1977; p. 320, 322).

"Perennial, fast-growing, creeping or twining vine with ribbed stems 3-6 m long.  Leaves opposite, heart-shaped; leaf blades 3-12 cm long, entire or toothed; petiole 1-6 cm long.  Floral heads 6-9 mm long, clustered in open, nearly flat-topped panicles; four yellowish-white florets per head, surrounded by 4 bracts 5-6 mm long.  Achenes linear, 2-3 mm long and brownish black.  Pappus of 40-45 bristles, c. 4 mm long; white turning reddish at maturity"  (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 25-26).

"M. cordata is very similar to M. micrantha but can be distinguished by the membranous outgrowths of young vegetative shoots which are hairy and the involucral bracts which are about 2 mm longer than on M. micrantha"  (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; pp. 47-48).

Description from the Flora of China online.
Description from the Digital Flora of Taiwan.

Habitat/ecology:  "Grows most frequently in places receiving high rainfall, probably 1,500 mm or more; prefers rich, damp soil; rarely grows in dry areas; and thrives in open, disturbed places.  For that reason it is common in young secondary forests, in forest clearings, in plantation tree crops, fallow or neglected lands, and along rivers and streams, waste areas, steep hillsides, and even mountainsides from whence winds probably spread the seeds to new areas.  The species will grow in partial shade, but cannot tolerate dense shade" (Holm et al., 1977; p. 324).

"Disturbed forests, forest clearings, plantation crops, pastures, water courses, roadsides, fallow land.  0->2000 m altitude (Papua New Guinea).  A serious weed of plantation crops (rubber, coffee, cocoa and oil palms) and pastures in Indonesia and Malaysia.  In Papua New Guinea it is not as troublesome as M. micrantha." (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 25-26).

Propagation:  "Large amounts of seed transported by the wind or by adhering to human clothing or the hair of animals.  Vegetative reproduction can occur from broken stem fragments that may be dislodged and transported by machinery or by rainfall run-off.  In Mauritius, Craig and Evans (1946) reported rapid spread of M. cordata caused by the movement of broken stem fragments by streams and floods."  (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; pp. 47-48).

Native range:  Southeast Asia and East Africa (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; pp. 47-48).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
New Guinea (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea) New Guinea Island	New Guinea Island		Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
Papua New Guinea Bougainville Islands	Bougainville Island		Foreman, D. B. (1971) (p. 37)
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	Henty, E. E./Pritchard, G. H. (1975) (p. 77) Not troublesome in New Guinea as a weed.
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Samoa Western Samoa Islands	Western Samoa Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	native	Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 92)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cambodia Cambodia	Cambodia (Kingdom of)		Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013) Thickets, forests; 100-1700 m. Hainan, SE Yunnan.
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 190)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	uncertain if introduced invasive	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 61) Weed of uncertain origin
Taiwan Taiwan Island	Taiwan Island	native	Ching-I Peng, ed. (2013) "Widespread from north to south, at forest edges".
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)		Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013)

Control:  If you know of control methods for Mikania cordata, please let us know.