Viet Nam Net
14 August, 2013
The plant, also known as touch-me-not, originated in tropical America.
In the Mekong Delta, it has covered more than 6,000 ha, flourishing along the banks of rivers and canals, on farming land, in vacant industrial parks as well as forests.
Scientists say that the plant first appeared in Viet Nam in 1984. It scatters its seeds through wind or water, can grow up to 6 metres long and has thorny trunks and branches.
It has had negative impacts on local fauna and flora and affected daily lives of residents, they add.