Guwahati: Students at Kaliabor College just tagged a new intruder. They found the plant Salvia misella growing in Northeast India for the first time. The team of four botany undergrads caught the weed on their own college campus before tracking it across Silghat.
Dr. Dipankar Bora led the research. His team of Guriya Bhawal, Hiya Das, Joniyal Tisso, and Prasenjit Mahatu scoured the roads near the Sri Sri Kamakhya Devalaya to map the spread. Their work is now official in the Journal of Economic and Taxonomic Botany under the title "First Report of Salvia misella (Lamiaceae) from Northeast India."
This plant hails from South America. It is moving in on local vegetation, crowding out native growth. Cattle and goats refuse to touch it, which lets the weed take over faster. While researchers note the plant is not toxic, they want it gone. It creates a mess for farmers and gardeners by choking out other life. The team warns that locals should clear it from fields to protect their crops.
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