| Common Name: | Spotted knapweed |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Centaurea |
| Species: | biebersteinii |
| Classification/Rank: | Extremely Invasive |
| Method of Transportation: | Vehicles, in hay and on/through animals. |
| Habitat/Range: | Open areas with well-drained soils such as grass-lands, roadsides, right-of-ways and open forests. Tolerant to dense shade. |
Spotted knapweed (Centaurea biebersteinii) is a very competitive weed of dry open sites. It displaces desirable forage and native plant species reducing the landscape carrying capacity for livestock and wildlife.
Spotted knapweed grows up to 1.5 m tall and has purple (occasionally white) flowers found at the ends of branches. The flowerhead has black-tipped bracts ("scales") that give the plants a spotted appearance. It can act like a biennial or short-lived perennial. It has hairy, deeply-cut leaves that become smaller towards the top of the plant.
For more information on Spotted knapweed visit the Weeds BC Spotted knapweed webpage. To report this plant call 1-866-44WEEDS or use the Report-A-Weed application.
NWIPC's Annual Report for 2017 was released at our AGM in Smithers in October 2018. Check it out here.
Land owners and managers have long recognized the need to control invasive plants to limit their impacts. In May 2018, a new smartphone app...
