| PARTHENIUM
WEED |
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| Parthenium
weed's botanical name is Parthenium Hystrophorous. It is a herbaceous plant, and a native of Tropical America.
Parthenium weed is locally called Congress or Gajjar Grass.
It is an annual herb and has a deep taproot and erect stem, which becomes woody with age.
Parthenium weed leaves are deeply lobed. It is pale green in colour and has soft hair. |
| Parthenium
weed flower is creamy white in color. The weed has a large number of
stems. It has small (1-2mm long) black seeds with white scales. They are not visible to the naked eye.
It has been declared noxious in America, Australia, India and many other countries especially those having tropical climates (Parson & Euthbert Son, 1992). |
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| Parthenium
weed germinates in spring and summer. It dies around autumn.
It can however; grow any time of the year, if conditions are suitable for its
growth and usually grows near water points. It can set in four weeks after
germination and flowering continues till the plant dies. It is a prolific producer of
seed and can produce upto one-lac seeds per plant. In India, it exists virtually
everywhere North, South, East or West. |
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| Problems
associated with Parthenium |
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It is a vigorous species, which colonizes in grassy land . It grows rapidly in bare areas along roadsides and water points. |
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It reduces the production of pasture. |
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It is very expensive to control. |
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It destroys price of grassy land. |
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It is a major health hazard to human beings. |
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It emits carbon dioxide and hence, poses a problem to nitrogen fixation and becomes a parasite, dependent on standing crops and animals in its vicinity. |
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Its pollens are a major cause of asthma, especially in children and elderly people. |
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It is a major cause of Allergic, Trinities Sinusitis, affecting about ten percent of the people who live near it (Tower & Subarao, 1992). |
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It is a major cause of dermatitis, a skin disease, among animals and human being. |
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It reduces yield of milk and weight of animals. |
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It causes irritation to eyes. |
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| Effect of Parthenium on human health and livestock |
| DISORDER |
REACTION |
| Contact dermatitis |
Seasonal eruption of the exposed skin surface |
| Eczema |
Chronic lichensified eczema of the exposed skin surfaces |
| Eczematoid dermatitis |
Skin eruptions and itching |
| Dermatitis |
Skin eruptions and itching |
| Allergic reaction |
Cracks all over the sole |
| Allergic papules |
Sore throat, bubbles in the mouth |
| Fatigue |
General weakness, skin eruptions |
| Severe dermatitis |
Loss of scalp, body hair, ridging on nails |
| Fever in cows |
Inflamed udder and rashes |
| Hypersensitivity in rabbit |
Restlessness, natural falling of hairs from the dorsal region of the neck and back, small boils and oozing of boils. |
| Ulcerations in buffaloes, horses
donkeys, sheeps, and goats |
Acute and chronic toxicity, ulcers both in the mouth and digestive tract, oesophagus and abnormal folds, necrosis of kidney and liver |
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