The Sunday News
Sharon Chimenya, Masvingo Correspondent
LANTANA Camara plant, an invasive alien species which many use as a boundary fence and for beautification at their homesteads has proven to have done more harm than good to the environment.
The alien species which is native to Central and South America is believed to have been brought into the country for no specific use other than for beautification but has since turned into a green mess.
In Masvingo, the lantana camara is mostly found in areas such as Bikita, Gutu, Zaka, and Masvingo District.
One of the areas that have been heavily affected by the alien species is the Great Zimbabwe Monuments and the areas surrounding it where the plant has become an environmental nuisance.
The plant reduces the productivity of pastures and alters the soil structures resulting in reduced yields.
When there is a veld fire, lantana burns very easily posing a danger to the environment.
According to the laws of the country lantana camara is supposed to be eradicated or controlled since it has the negative impacts on the environment and was declared an unwanted species.
The work to eradication is not a one-man job as the seeds of lantana are easily transported from area to another making it difficult to deal with if the other person does not cooperate.
The movement of animals such as cattle, baboons and also birds transport the seeds from one place to another.
So even if one is able to control it in one area, if nothing is done in the nearby environs there will be a risk of another infestation.
At the Great Zimbabwe Monuments sites of workers working on the eradication of the invasive species has become the order of the day as the management are on the drive to ensure that they deal with the environmental nuisance.
Although the war to end the lantana growth in the country seem to be far from being over it is the job of everyone to put their hands together with a little effort and dedication a lot of achievements can be recorded.
Some paths and scenery at the World Heritage site have since been cleared from the bushes but before the clearings one could not tell what was underneath or engulfed by the bushes except through the map.
The eradication of lantana is ideal in that it helps conserve the history and the beauty of the site and the trees which are said to have a spiritual significance and medical benefits.
In an interview at the site, a conservator for World Monument Fund Mr Simon Warrack says lantana camara has no benefits both to the people and the environment and for a heritage like Great Zimbabwe it is very damaging.
Great Zimbabwe
“In terms of stone conservation at the heritage site the roots can destroy the walls but in terms of ecology it actually changes the properties of the soil.
It’s also poisonous, it has no benefits, you can’t eat anything on it, damages the cattle as well and if you burn it the smoke is not good for you either.
At one area that was cleared there is a huge rock that was invisible before and it was not even on the map but when you look at it now, it is as big as a size of a house.
It makes a whole area look like a green mess.
You will have no appreciation of what is on the ground.
It’s very damaging for a heritage site like this because it just cancels it.”
He however, said that the progress that is being undertaken at site is fantastic and is pleased with the progress.
An Archaeologist at the Great Zimbabwe Monuments Dr Tawanda Mukwende said they were working on clearing some paths so that tourists were able to visit and have an appreciation of the whole site.
“As the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe we are working with the World Monument Fund who are our sponsors together with the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation in trying to control this lantana stretch at Great Zimbabwe.
The idea is that in the long term we should be able to be going out of the world heritage area to cover other areas so that we don’t have a reinfestation at the site.”
They are already working on the clearance of a path that leads to the hill complex known as the Watergate path which was closed to visitors because of the bushes of lantana.
“The Watergate path is one of the paths that lead to the hill complex; we have the modern ancient and the ancient paths.
At the end of the day what we want to do is to ensure that all sections of Great Zimbabwe are exposed and visitors can come and visit but if there are thickets of lantana, visitors are normally restricted to particular areas.
So, for now, only the modern path and the ancient ascent are the only paths open to visitors but if we manage to clear the lantana infestation we will then open up the rest of the monuments so that tourist can come and enjoy and see what our forefathers managed to do here,” he said.
The Environmental Management Agency, Masvingo District Environmental Officer, Mr Celestino Uriga said when lantana camara invades an area, it alters the soil components, killing other plants around it.
“Underneath the lantana camara very few plants survive because where it grows it alters the condition of the soils, it changes the potential hydrogen (ph), and it changes many properties of the soil in such a way that it is not suitable for the survival of other plants.
It spreads very fast and the best time to deal with it is before the flowering stage and the method that we recommend is that of mechanical removal whereby you would just uproot it and then burn it.
For you to win the war in lantana camara eradication you would need to vegetate the area.”
He said one of the success stories was that undertaken at Morgenster Mission where the stretch of lantana was removed and the area was put under poultry, nutritional gardening and orchard.
