Weeds:Information

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Characterizations of Crop Weed Pests

‘’Classification by Family, Genera, and Species’’



Amaranth_Family_(AMARANTHACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Amaranth Family (AMARANTHACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Amaranth Family Life span: annual herbs Leaves: leaves simple, entire, alternate or opposite Flowers: flowers perfect or imperfect, inconspicuous, with 3 dry, scarious, persistent, pungent bracts Calyx: calyx commonly of 5 persistent, usually scarious sepals Stamens: stamens as many as the sepals Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1-loculed, usually with 2 or 3 stigmas Fruit: fruit a utricle, indehiscent or circumscissile Chromosome number: x = 6-13, 17+.

Glabrous_(Amaranthus_L.) ===

Glabrous (Amaranthus L.)


Surface: Glabrous Life span: annual Growth form: stems prostrate to erect Leaves: leaves alternate; lanceolate Flowers: monoecious or dioecious; flowers in dense terminal or axillary clusters, each subtended by 3 conspicuous green or red to purple bracts Sepals: sepals 2-5 (rarely 1), distinct Stamens: stamens 5 (1 or 3), distinct Anthers: anthers 4-loculed (apparently 2-loculed following dehiscence) Ovary: ovary 1-loculed, with 2 or 3 stigmas Ovules: ovules 1 Fruit: utricle 1-seeded, circumscissile to indehiscent Seeds: seeds erect, lenticular, lustrous Toxins: Amaranths may accumulate levels of nitrate sufficient to be poisonous to livestock.

Pale_amaranth_(Amaranthus_albus_L.)

Pale amaranth (Amaranthus albus L.)


Common name: Pale amaranth Life span: Monoecious (rarely perfect) annuals Growth form: the main stem erect, the branches spreading or ascending, 1.5-10 dm tall Surface: herbage pale green to whitish, glabrous, puberulent, or villous Leaves: leaves alternate, the petioles 3-40 mm long, the blades elliptic, oblong, spatulate, or obovate, mainly 1-7 cm long, cuneate basally, rounded to mucronate-cuspidate apically, the veins prominent Flowers: flowers in axillary clusters, usually shorter than the petioles Bracts: bracts green, rigid, 2-4 mm long, pungent, spreading Sepals: sepals 3, the staminate oblong, cuspidate, scarious, Pistil: the pistillate 3, oblong to linear, acute, 1-veined, often tinged with red Stamens: stamens 3 Style: style branches 3 Fruit: utricle circumscissile, rugose, exceeding the perianth Seed: seed lenticular, 0.6-0.9 mm wide, dark brown, lustrous Chromosome number: 2n = 32 Habitat: Weedy plants of open sites and cultivated land; widespread in temperate North America; adventive from tropical America

Prostrate_pigweed_(Amaranthus_blitoides_Wats.)

Prostrate pigweed (Amaranthus blitoides Wats.)


Common name: Prostrate pigweed Synonym: [A. graecizans authors, not L.] Life Span: Monoecious annuals Stems: stems 1-6 dm long Growth form: prostrate, branched mainly from the base Stems: glabrous or sparingly hairy Surface: herbage pale green or whitish, sometimes tinged with red or purple Leaves: leaves alternate, the petioles 2-20 mm long, the blades obovate to oval, spatulate, or elliptic, mostly 8-40 mm long, cuneate to attenuate basally, rounded to acute apically, prominently veined Flowers: flowers in dense clusters, these usually shorter than the petioles Bracts: bracts oblong to lanceolate, subequal to the sepals, spinose Sepals: sepals 4 or 5, the staminate scarious, oblong, acute, the pistillate oblong, 2.5-3 mm long, 1-veined, green with white margins Stamens: stamens 3 Style: style branches 3 Fruit: utricle circumscissile Seeds: seeds 1.3-1.5 mm wide, black, shining or dull Chromosome number: 2n = 32 Habitat: Weedy species of open sites and cultivated land; widespread in temperate North America; Mexico; Europe

Pigweed_(Amaranthus_hybridus_L.)

Pigweed (Amaranthus hybridus L.)


Common name: Pigweed Surface: plant dark green or purple, pubescent or almost smooth Growth form: stem usually slender and branched, erect Height: 0.6-2.4 m tall Leaves: green on both sides, sometimes paler beneath Spikes: slender-cylindric, green, flexuous, somewhat spreading or drooping Bracts: rather long-awned, twice the length of the 5 acute or acuminate sepals Stamens: 5 Fruit: utricle scarcely wrinkled, circumscissile

Palmer's_amaranth_(Amaranthus_palmeri_Wats.)

Palmer's amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri Wats.)


Common name: Palmer's amaranth Life Span: annual Stems: stems 6-10 dm tall, branched throughout, glabrous or villous Leaves: leaves alternate, the petioles slender and long, the blades 1-6 cm long, ovate to lanceolate, cuneate to rounded basally, acute or shortly acuminate apically Flowers: Dioecious; flowers borne in terminal and axillary clusters or panicles Sepals: staminate flowers with 5 sepals; pistillate flowers with 5 recurved sepals Bracts: bracts 4-6 mm long, much surpassing the sepals Stamens: staminate flowers with 5 stamens Styles: styles usually 2 (3) Fruit: utricle circumscissile Seed: seed 1-1.3 mm wide, dark brown Chromosome number: n = 17 Habitat: adventive from the southwestern U.S.

Redroot_pigweed_(Amaranthus_retroflexus_L.)

Redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.)


Common name: Redroot pigweed Life span: annual Growth Form: herbs; stems erect Height: 0.6-1.5 dm tall or more, Surface: puberulent to villous, white-striped or suffused with red Leaves: leaves alternate, long-petiolate, the blades mainly 1-8 cm long, usually hairy (at least on veins beneath), lanceolate to ovate, obtuse to acute basally, rounded to acute apically Flowers: monoecious; flowers in dense terminal or axillary paniculate spikes Bracts: bracts ovate, subulate apically, at least the longest much surpassing the flowers Sepals: sepals of staminate flowers ovate to lanceolate, acute, scarious, those of pistillate flowers narrowly oblong, rounded to truncate apically, usually emarginate and often mucronate, scarious Stamens: stamens 5 Style: style branches 3 Fruit: utricle circumscissile, surpassed by the longest sepals Seeds: seeds about 1 mm wide, dark brown or reddish Chromosome number: 2n = 34 Habitat: Weedy species of gardens, other cultivated land, and open sites; adventive from Central America, widespread in North America; Europe. Redroot pigweed is a common weed of gardens throughout much of North America.


Arum_Family_(ARACEAE_Juss.)

Arum Family (ARACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Arum Family Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs with corms or rootstocks mostly tuberous, and an acrid or pungent cell sap Leaves: basal, long-petioled, simple or compound, often net-veined Flowers: small, crowded on a fleshy axil (spadix) and often more or less enveloped by a hood-like bract (spathe); perianth lacking or of 4-6 sepals Stamens: stamens 4-10 with very short filaments Fruit: fruit a berry or utricle

Water-Lettuce_(Pistia_L.)

Water-Lettuce (Pistia L.)


Common name: Water-Lettuce Growth form: plants aquatic Stems: very short Leaves: in a rosette floating on the water surface, the petioles short, the blades broadly obovate Inflorescence: inflorescence axillary, few-flowered, enclosed in a small white spathe Flowers: plants monoecious, the staminate flowers above; perianth none Pistil: pistil solitary; ovary 1-celled

*Pistia_stratiotes_L.

Pistia stratiotes L.


Growth form: stoloniferous Leaves: 5-15 cm long, plaited Bracts: spathe ca. 1 cm long, constricted near the middle Chromosome number: 2n = 28


Aspidium_Family_(ASPIDIACEAE_Gray)

Aspidium Family (ASPIDIACEAE Gray)


Common name: Aspidium Family Growth form: terrestrial ferns with erect, ascending or horizontal creeping rootstocks Leaves: one- to three-pinnate or decompound; venation pinnate or anastomosing Indumentum: indumentum of scales or trichomes, unicellular, articulate, or branching Sorus: sori indusiate or exindusiate, orbicular, peltate, or reniform, on the veins or at tips of free veinlets Annulus: annulus fourteen cells or more Spore: spore bilateral, oblong, smooth or tuberculate Stipe: stipes rarely jointed

*Onoclea_L.

Onoclea L.


Growth form: Coarse ferns Leaves: two distinctly different kinds of leaves; 1) the sterile foliaceous suberect, withering with frosts and 2) the fertile ones strictly erect, with pinnules modified to form hard, rounded, berry-like divisions in which the sori are concealed, ultimately dehiscent and persisting throughout the winter Sorus: concealed by berry-like pinnules

*Onoclea_sensibilis_L.

Onoclea sensibilis L.


Leaves: fertile leaves 3-7.5 dm tall, the fertile portion bipinnate; sterile leaves 3-13.5 dm tall, broadly triangular, deeply pinnatifid, the rachis winged; pinnae with entire or undualte margins Habitat: moist meadows and damp woods


Bladderwort_Family_(LENTIBULARIACEAE_Rich._in_Poileau_&_Turpin)

Bladderwort Family (LENTIBULARIACEAE Rich. in Poileau & Turpin)


Common name: Bladderwort Family Growth form: herbaceous, aquatic Life span: perennial Leaves: leaves alternate or basal, typically submersed and finely divided, bearing insectivorous bladders Flowers: flowers perfect, irregular, few to several in scapose racemes Calyx: calyx 2-lobed Petals: corolla of 5 united petals, bilabiate, the lower lip saccate or spurred at the base Stamens: stamens 2, sometimes with 2 staminodia also Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, unilocular, bicarpellate Style: style 1 or lacking, the stigma 2-lobed Fruit: fruit a capsule Chromosome number: x = 6, 8, 9, 11, 21

Bladderwort_(Utricularia_L.)

Bladderwort (Utricularia L.)


Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs Roots: without roots or apparently so Leaves: leaves all submersed and finely dissected, or sometimes emergent and with leaves somewhat reduced, alternate, bearing bladderlike floats that trap small animals Flowers: flowers showy Calyx: calyx with 2 entire lobes Petals: corolla with the upper lip entire or obscurely 2-lobed, the lower entire or 3-lobed, produced into a basal spur


Borage_Family_(BORAGINACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Borage Family (BORAGINACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Borage Family Growth form: plants herbaceous or shrubby Leaves: leaves simple, alternate, opposite, or whorled, entire and pubescent, hispid or setose Flowers: flowers perfect, regular, solitary or cymose Inflorescence: cymes glomerate-racemose or spicate, frequently unilateral and coiled (scorpioid), usually with bracts between, to one side of, or opposite the flowers Calyx: calyx usually 5-lobed or 5-parted, usually persistent, the lobes valvate Petals: corolla 5-lobed, sometimes crested or appendaged in the throat Stamens: stamens 5, borne on the corolla tube alternate with the lobes Ovary: ovary superior, bicarpellate, usually 4-ovulate, entire or lobed, becoming tough or bony at maturity Fruit: fruit commonly breaking up into 4 single-seeded lobes (nutlets) Style: style simple or 2-cleft, seated in the pericarp at the apex of the fruit or borne between the nutlets on the receptacle, or on an upward prolongation (gynobase) Seed: endosperm absent or scarce; embryo straight or curved Chromosome number: x = 4-12 Note: The classification of this family is based primarily upon the structure of the fruit. In many cases it is difficult to recognize the genus and almost impossible to obtain a precise identification of the species if the specimens lack mature fruiting structures.

*Amsinckia_Lehm.

Amsinckia Lehm.


Life span: annual Growth form: pungent-bristly, herbaceous plants, erect Stem: stems erect or with spreading branches, leafy Leaves: leaves alternate, linear to ovate, usually veinless Inflorescence: racemes usually ebracteate Calyx: calyx cut to base into erect lanceolate or oblong lobes Petals: corolla tubular or salverform, heterostyled, yellow or orange, tube cylindrical, glabrous, unappendaged lobes spreading, rounded, imbricate Stamens: stamens included, affixed in the tube; filaments very short Anthers: anthers oblong; style obtuse, filiform included Stigma: stigma capitate, emarginate Ovary: ovules 4 Cotyledons: cotyledons 2-parted Fruit: nutlets 4, erect, angulate-ovoid, smooth or rough, unmargined, strongly keeled ventrally; gynobase pyramidal, about half the height of the nutlet

Stoneseed_(Lithospermum_L.)

Stoneseed (Lithospermum L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbaceous or fruticose plants Leaves: alternate leaves Flowers: flowers white, yellow, or violet, in bracteate racemes Sepals: calyx usually undivided Petals: corolla tubular or salverform, the tube cylindrical, lobes spreading and imbricate, the throat with intruded appendages or with pubescent or glandular areas Stamens: stamens inserted in the tube, included; filaments short, anthers oblong, usually with apiculate connectives Style: style filiform Stigmas: stigmas geminate Ovary: ovules 4 Fruit: nutlets 4 or rarely fewer, erect, ovoid or angular, smooth or verrucose, inserted by a broad horizontal or slightly oblique basal areola; gynobase flat or very broadly pyramidal

Showy_Stoneseed_(Lithospermum_incisum_Lehm.)

Showy Stoneseed (Lithospermum incisum Lehm.)


Common name: showy stoneseed Life span: perennial Root: thick, woody Growth form: erect or ascending Stem: usually several, strigose to somewhat hirsute Height: 1-5 dm tall Leaves: alternate; 10-15 mm long, linear (lanceolate) to linear-oblong, strigose Inflorescence: terminal, leafy racemes; cleistogamous flowers present; in fruit usually with recurved pedicels; flowers monomorphic Calyx: 6-10 mm long Corolla 10-30 mm long, yellow, salverform, the limb 9-18 mm wide, the lobes fimbriate to toothed Fruit: nutlets 3-4 mm long, white and shining Habitat: Sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, ephedra, mixed desert shrub, bitterbrush, mountain brush, ponderosa pine, and mountain mahogany communities; central U. S., Canada, and Mexico westward to British Columbia, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.


Buckwheat_Family_(POLYGONACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Buckwheat Family (POLYGONACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Buckwheat Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs, subshrubs, shrubs, or twining vines Leaves: leaves simple, alternate, opposite, or whorled; stipules forming a sheath (ocrea) or absent Flowers: flowers perfect or polygamo-dioecious, regular; perianth 2- to 6-parted or -cleft, not readily identifiable as sepals and petals Stamens: stamens 2-9 Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1-loculed, 1-ovuled Styles: styles 2 or 3 Fruit: fruit an achene Chromosome number: x = 7-13

*Brunnichia_Banks_ex_Gaertner

Brunnichia Banks ex Gaertner


*Brunnichia_ovata

Brunnichia ovata


Buckwheat_(Fagopyrum_Mill.)

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum Mill.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: erect, fleshy herbs Stems: striate Leaves: alternate, petioled, hastate, with cylindric ocreae Flowers: small, white or green, in racemes, perfect Calyx: calyx 5-parted Stamens: stamens 8 Ovary: ovary 1-celled Style: style 3-parted Fruit: achene 3-angled

Green_Buckwheat_(Fagopyrum_tataricum_(L.)_Gaertn.)

Green Buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum (L.) Gaertn.)


Common name: Green Buckwheat Flower: short (c. 2mm) greenish-white tepals; tepals 5, petaloid, not winged or keeled, not enlarging in fruit Fruit: achenes with undulate margins Stamens: stamens 8 Syles: styles 3, long Fruit: achene with 3 acute angles, far exserted

Knotweed_(Polygonum_L.) ===

Knotweed (Polygonum L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs Roots: taproots or rhizomes Leaves: leaves alternate, cauline or basal Stipules: stipules sheathing Flowers: flowers solitary or clustered in leaf axils or in axillary or terminal spikelike racemes or panicles, not subtended by a regular involucre; perianth of 5 petaloid (or sepaloid) segments Stamens: stamens 8 (5 and 3) or lacking Pistils: pistils usually 3-carpelled Ovary: ovary 1-loculed, 1-ovuled Styles: styles 2 or 3, often very short Fruit: achenes lens-shaped or 3-angled

Knotweed,_chivalry-grass,_dishwater-grass_(Polygonum_aviculare_L.)

Knotweed, chivalry-grass, dishwater-grass (Polygonum aviculare L.)


Common name: Knotweed, chivalry-grass, dishwater-grass Life span: annuals Growth form: prostrate to ascending or erect Stems: stems striate, terete or angled, mostly 1-10 dm long Leaves: alternate; leaves usually not crowded, 5-40 mm long and 2-10 mm wide, oblong to elliptic or oblanceolate, smaller on the branchlets than on the main stem, acute to obtuse or rounded, the blade sessile or short-petiolate above the basal joint Stipules: stipules shredded, 3-6 mm long Flowers: flowers 1-5 axillary; pedicels included or shortly exserted; perianth 2-3 mm long, united ca 1/3 the length, 5-lobed, the lobes greenish with white or pink edges, the outer lobes only slightly broader than the inner Styles: styles 3 Fruit: achenes 3-angled, brown Chromosome number: 2n = 22, 40, 60 Habitat: Weedy species of open sites; widespread in most continents Note: The plants tolerate trampling and similar abuse that forces other plants to yield way to this vigorous species

Black_bindweed_(Polygonum_convolvulus_L.)

Black bindweed (Polygonum convolvulus L.)


Common name: Black bindweed Life span: annuals Growth form: erect (when young) or soon prostrate or twining Height: the stems 1-15 dm long or more Leaves: leaves with long petioles not jointed basally, the blades 1-8 cm long (from sinus to apex), 0.7-5 cm wide sagittate-ovate, acuminate Stipules: stipules 2-5 mm long, shredded and soon deciduous Flowers: flowers few to many, borne in axillary or terminal racemes; perianth 3-4.5 mm long, greenish, 5-lobed, the outer lobes keeled Styles: styles 3-cleft Fruit: achenes 3-angled, black, usually shining Chromosome number: 2n = 40 Habitat: Weedy species of gardens, fields, and other open habitats, where they twine on other forbs and shrubs; widespread in North America; adventive from Europe. Note: These plants thrive in raspberry plantings, where they are protected from eradication by the spiny raspberry thickets. Because of its twining habitat and sagittate-ovate leaves the plant is often confused with common bindweed.

Ladysthumb_(Polygonum_persicaria_L.)

Ladysthumb (Polygonum persicaria L.)


Common name: Ladysthumb Life span: annuals Growth form: erect to ascending Height: mainly 1.5-10 dm tall Leaves: alternate; leaves petiolate to subsessile, not jointed at the base; blades 1.5-15 cm long, 0.4-4 cm wide, lanceolate to elliptic or oblong, acuminate to attenuate apically, acute to cuneate basally, with a purplish spot near the center, usually glabrous, ciliate Stipules: stipules 5-15 mm long, not shredded, usually pubescent, long-ciliate apically Flowers: flowers several to numerous, borne in terminal and usually axillary racemes; perianth 1.5-3 mm long, not glandular-dotted, united only near the base, 5-lobed, the lobes pinkish or whitish, not strongly veined and with vein ends not recurved Styles: styles 2 or 3 Fruit: achenes lens shaped or 3-angled, black, lustrous Chromosome number: 2n = 22, 40, 44 Habitat: Fence lines, canal banks, marshes, pond margins, fields, gardens, and pastures; widespread in North America; Eurasia. Note: The long-ciliate ocrea distinguishes this species from willow-weed, with which it shares similar habit and habitat.

Dock_(Rumex_L.) ===

Dock (Rumex L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs Roots: stout taproots or rhizomes Leaves: leaves alternate, basal or mostly cauline, gradually reduced upward Stipules: stipules sheathing Flowers: flowers borne in panicles, not subtended by a regular involucre; perianth of 6 (rarely 4), petaloid or sepaloid segments, the inner 3 segments enlarging in fruit and forming the "wings"' or "valves" enclosing the fruit, the midveins of the valves sometimes thickened and forming grainlike tuberosities on the segments Stamens: stamens usually 6 Pistil: pistil 3-carpelled Ovary: the ovary 1-loculed, 1-ovuled Styles: styles 3 Fruit: fruit a 3-angled achene

Curled_dock_(Rumex_crispus_L.) ====

Curled dock (Rumex crispus L.)


Common name: Curled dock Life span: Perennial Growth form: erect herbs Roots: taproots Height: stems 3-10 dm tall or more Leaves: alternate; basal leaves long-petiolate; blades 8-40 cm long, 1.2-6 cm wide, oblong-lanceolate to elliptic, acute to rounded basally, acuminate to acute apically, undulate-crisped; cauline leaves somewhat smaller upward, short-petiolate Flowers: flowers numerous, perfect, borne in panicles with large leafy bracts to midlength or above, usually greenish; fruiting pedicels jointed above the base; perianth 1.5-2 mm long, the outer segments not reflexed; inner segments much enlarged in fruit, 3-5 mm long, cordate to deltoid or ovate, denticulate to entire, usually each (sometimes only 1 or 2) bearing a reticulately patterned tuberosity almost half as long as the segment Fruit: achenes 2-3 mm long, brown, lustrous Chromosome number: 2n = 60 Habitat: Weedy plants of open sites often in roadside ditches, moist meadows, or stream banks at 760 to 2440 m in probably all Utah counties; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia Note: This plant has also been used in folk medicine, and has also been implicated as a poisonous species.

Bitter_dock_(Rumex_obtusifolius_L.)

Bitter dock (Rumex obtusifolius L.)


Common name: Bitter dock Life span: perennial Growth form: erect herbs Roots: taproot Height: stems 4-12 dm tall (or more), usually unbranched below the inflorescence Leaves: basal leaves long-petioled; blades 10-40 cm long, 4-15 cm wide, ovate to oblong or lanceolate, cordate to truncate basally, obtuse to acute or acuminate apically, undulate; cauline leaves like the basal ones, somewhat smaller and with shorter petioles upward Flowers: flowers numerous, perfect, borne in panicles with leafy bracts to the middle or above, usually greenish; perianth segments 2-3 mm long, the outer ones not reflexed; inner segments 3.5-5 mm long in fruit, ovate, with 4-6 teeth per segment, each tooth 0.5-2 mm long, at least some valves with a prominent tuberosity Fruit: achenes 1.5-2 mm long, brown, lustrous Chromosome number: 2n = 20, 40 Habitat: Ruderal weeds, mainly on canal and stream banks; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia.


Buttercup_Family_(RANUNCULACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Buttercup Family (RANUNCULACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Buttercup Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or trailing vines Leaves: leaves alternate, opposite, or basal, simple, deeply divided or variously compound Flowers: flowers hypogynous, perfect or rarely imperfect, regular or irregular, lacking a hypanthium Sepals: sepals 3 to many, often petaloid Petals: petals 3 to many or lacking Stamens: stamens several to many Pistils: pistils 1 to many, superior Fruit: fruit an achene, follicle, or berry Chromosome number: x = 6-10, 13

*Delphinium_L.

Delphinium L.


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Roots: from slender or tuberous roots Stems: stems simple (rarely branched) Growth form: erect Leaves: leaves alternate or mostly basal, the blades palmately divided Flowers: flowers perfect, irregular, large and showy, borne in terminal racemes or panicles, subtended by a pair of bracts Sepals: sepals 5, petaloid, the upper one produced into a prominent spur, the lateral ones often shorter than the lower 2 Petals: petals 4, in 2 pair, the upper ones spurred and clawless, the lower ones clawed and with expanded blades; bluish-purple Stamens: stamens numerous Pistils: pistils 3-5 Fruit: fruit a follicle.

*Ranunculus_L.

Ranunculus L.


Life span: perennial, biennial, or annual Growth form: aquatic or terrestrial herbs; stems erect, ascending or sometimes prostrate and stoloniferous Roots: fibrous to tuberous roots Leaves: leaves basal or cauline and alternate, simple or compound Flowers: flowers perfect, regular, solitary or few to several in cymes Sepals: sepals 3-5, herbaceous or petaloid, usually deciduous Petals: petals 5-16, rarely more Stamens: stamens 5 to numerous, sometimes the outer ones petaloid Pistils: pistils 5 to many Fruit: fruit an achene

Tall_buttercup_(Ranunculus_acris_L.)

Tall buttercup (Ranunculus acris L.)


Common name: Tall buttercup Growth form: terrestrial Life span: perennials Height: mostly 2-5 dm tall Stems: stems spreading, long-hairy below, the hairs appressed upwards, 1.5-3 mm wide, erect, not rooting at the nodes Leaves: alternate; basal leaf blades simple, 3-parted, the 3 main segments again lobed or toothed, pentagonal in outline, the ultimate segments mostly 1-7 mm wide; petioles 3-15 cm long; cauline leaves similar but more shortly petiolate Bracts: bracts with 1-3 linear segments, sessile Flowers: pedicels 2-20 cm long or more Sepals: sepals 5, greenish, or marginally yellowish, 4-5.5 mm long, pilosulous, spreading deciduous Petals: petals 5, yellow, 8-10 mm long, obovate Fruit: achenes glabrous, 2.6-3 mm long, about 50, in a subglobose cluster, 5.5-6 mm high and 6-7.5 mm wide; beaks about 0.5-0.6 mm long Receptacle: receptacle hirtellous Chromosome number: n = 14, 28


Cacao_Family_(STERCULIACEAE_Bartling)

Cacao Family (STERCULIACEAE Bartling)


Common name: Cacao Family Growth form: trees, shrubs, or herbs Surface: chiefly with stellate pubescence Leaves: alternate, simple or rarely compound, stipulate Flowers: small or large, perfect, regular or nearly so Calyx: calyx usually 5-lobed Corolla: petals 5 or 0, free or united with stamen tube Stamens: fertile stamens 5, the filaments united below, with staminodia sometimes also present Fruit: fruit a 1-5 -celled capsule

*Waltheria_L.

Waltheria L.


Growth form: herbs or shrubs Leaves: petiolate, serrate, stipulate, with pubescent chiefly of stellate hairs Flowers: variously arranged, small Calyx: calyx five-parted Corolla: petals five, spatulate Stamens: stamens five, fused at the base and opposite the petals Ovary: ovary one-carpellate and one-locular Fruit: fruit a smooth or pubescent capsule

*Waltheria_americans ====

Waltheria americans



Caltrop_Family_(ZYGOPHYLLACEAE_R._Br._in_Flinders)

Caltrop Family (ZYGOPHYLLACEAE R. Br. in Flinders)


Common name: Caltrop Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or shrubs Leaves: leaves usually opposite, pinnately compound or digitately 2 or 3 (7) -foliolate, the leaflets entire Flowers: flowers perfect, regular or nearly so Sepals: sepals 5, distinct or united at the base Petals: petals usually 5 Stamens: stamens usually 10 Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, usually 4- or 5-loculed Style: style 1 Fruit: fruit splitting into several nutlets Chromosome number: x = 6, 8-13+

Cresote_bush_(Larrea_Cav.) ===

Cresote (Larrea Cav.)


Surface: resinous Aroma: aromatic Life span: evergreen shrubs Leaves: leaves opposite, with 2, spreading, sessile, asymmetrical olive green leaflets Flowers: flowers solitary, yellow, showy Sepals: sepals 5, unequal, deciduous Petals: petals 5, yellow Stamens: stamens 10, borne on a 10-lobed nectary disk Pistil: pistil 5-lobed and 5-carpelled Style: style slender Stigmas: stigmas 5 Fruit: fruit globose, hairy, separating into 5 indehiscent, 1-seeded carpels

Cresote_bush_(Larrea_tridentata_(DC.)_Cov.)

Cresote bush (Larrea tridentata (DC.) Cov.)


Common name: Creosote bush Synonym: [Zygophyllum tridentatum DC.; L. glutinosa Engelm.; L. divaricata authors, not Cav.] Height: mainly 1-3 m tall Growth form: shrubs Stems: stems flexuous, seldom more than 5 cm thick, arranged in broadly rounded clumps, the wood very tough; nodes with dark bands Stipules: stipules brown, persistent Leaves: leaflets 3-10 mm long, obliquely lance-ovate Inflorescence: pedicels 4-10 mm long Sepals: sepals 5-8 mm long, broadly elliptic, villous-strigose Petals: petals yellow, 5-12 mm long Fruit: fruit 4-5.5 mm long, villous with long, white to tawny hair Style: style persistent 5-9 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 26, 52? Habitat: Creosote bush and other warm desert shrub communities; California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, and Mexico.

Puncture_vine_(Tribulus_L.)

Puncture vine (Tribulus L.)


Life span: annual Growth form: prostrate herbs Leaves: leaves even-pinnate with several to many leaflets Stipules: stipules membranous Flowers: flowers axillary, solitary usually 5-merous Stamens: stamens usually 10, with slender filaments Petals: petals 5, bright yellow Sepals: sepals 5, caducous Ovary: ovary 5-lobed, 5-loculed Fruit: fruit 5-angled, horizontally compressed, pubescent, separating into 5, indurate, 3- to 5-seeded, indehiscent, 7-spined, nutlets

Puncture_vine,_goat-head,_caltrop_(Tribulus_terrestris_L.)

Puncture vine, goat-head, caltrop (Tribulus terrestris L.)


Life span: annual Common name: Puncture vine, goat-head, caltrop Growth form: plants with prostrate spreading stems Height: mainly 1-10 cm long Leaves: pinnate; leaflets 3-8 pairs, 5-14 mm, oblong to elliptic, acute apically, pilose Inflorescence: flower found in the angle between the leaf and the stem Petals: petals 3-5 mm long, yellow Obovate Fruit: fruit segments crested, sculptured into elongate spinose protuberances, these spinulose-aristate, and bearing 2 puberulent spines mainly 3-6 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 12, 24, 36, 48 Habitat: Gardens, roadsides, sidewalks, and other open sites; widespread in the U. S.; adventive from the Old World. Note: This tribulation of the earth is a vicious weed, leaving in its wake a refuse heap of punctured tires and painfully injured feet; it is, indeed, adequately named scientifically.


Carpetweed_Family_(AIZOACEAE_Rudolphi)

Carpetweed Family (AIZOACEAE Rudolphi)


Common name: Carpetweed Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs; stems mostly prostrate or ascending, often succulent Leaves: leaves simple, opposite or whorled, entire, with or without stipules Flowers: flowers solitary or clustered in leaf axils, perfect, regular Sepals: calyx 4- to 5-lobed or -parted, the tube free or adnate to the ovary Petals: petals lacking Stamens: stamens few to many Anthers: anthers small, 2-loculed, linear Ovary: ovary 1- to 5-loculed, inferior or superior Styles: styles as many as locules Fruit: fruit a capsule Seeds: seeds numerous Chromosome number: x = 8, 9

Carpetweed_(Mollugo_L.) ===

Carpetweed (Mollugo L.)


Life span: annual Growth form: much-branched herbs, nonsucculent Leaves: leaves whorled Flowers: flowers small, perfect, without petals, with long, filiform pedicels Sepals: calyx 5-parted, persistent, white inside Stamens: stamens 3-5, hypogynous Ovary: ovary 3-loculed, superior Fruit: capsule ovoid to ellipsoid, thin-walled, 3-valved, loculicidally dehiscent Seeds: seeds numerous

Indian_Chickweed_(Mollugo_verticillata_L.)

Indian Chickweed (Mollugo verticillata L.)


Common name: Indian Chickweed Life span: annual Leaves: 1-3 cm long, narrowly lanceolate or spatulate, in whorls of three to eight Flowers: usually two to five on slender pedicels arising from the nodes, sepals green or white, 4-5 mm wide, stamens three or four Fruit: capsule 3 mm, ovoid, with many small seeds


Catalpa_Family_(BIGNONIACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Catalpa Family (BIGNONIACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Catalpa Family Growth form: Shrubs or trees Leaves: leaves mostly opposite, simple or compound Flowers: flowers large and showy, perfect, irregular, in terminal panicles or spicate racemes Calyx: calyx short, bilabiate or unequally 4- to 5-toothed Petals: corolla sympetalous, bilabiate, 5-lobed Stamens: stamens 2 or 4 Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2-carpelled Style: style 1 Stigma: stigma bilobed Fruit: fruit an elongate 2-valved capsule Seeds: seeds many, large, flat, winged or comose Chromosome number: x = 20 (7)

Trumpet-vine_(Campsis_Lour.)

Trumpet-vine (Campsis Lour.)


Growth form: woody vines Leaves: leaves opposite, odd-pinnately compound, with toothed leaflets Flowers: flowers orange, in compact terminal panicles Calyx: calyx 5-lobed, suffused with red, leathery Petals: corolla funnelform, expanded above the narrow tube, the 5 lobes spreading Stamens: stamens 4, in 2 pair Ovary: ovary 2-loculed, surrounded at base by a large disk Fruit: fruit a fusiform capsule, the 2 valves separating from the septum Seeds: seeds numerous, compressed, with 2 large translucent wings

Trumpet-vine_(Campsis_radicans_(L.)_Seemann)

Trumpet-vine (Campsis radicans (L.) Seemann)


Common name: Trumpet-vine Synonym: [Bignonia radicans L.] Height: stems mainly 1.5-10 m long Growth form: climbing by means of aerial rootlets or merely clambering over other plants or structures Leaves: leaves pinnately compound with 7-11 leaflets, these 2-8 cm long, oval to ovate or oblong, long-acuminate, serrate, dark green above, pale and hairy beneath (at least on the midrib) Petals: corolla tube orange, mainly 6-8 cm long Fruit: capsules commonly 7-16 cm long, sharply margined at maturity, tapering at both ends Habitat: cultivated ornamental, persisting and spreading; widely cultivated in the U. S., indigenous in eastern U. S.


Cattail_Family_(TYPHACEAE_Juss.)

Cattail Family (TYPHACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Cattail Family Growth form: erect marsh or aquatic herbs Root: creeping rootstock Stems: smooth, terete stems Leaves: linear, sessile, erect

Cattail_(Typha_L.)

Cattail (Typha L.)


Flowers: staminate and pistillate flowers borne on the same axis, the staminate spike upermost; perianth of bristles Roots: rootstocks are eaten by muskrats

Broad-Leaved_Cattail_(Typha_latifolia_L.) ====

Broad-Leaved Cattail (Typha latifolia L.)


Common name: Broad-Leaved Cattail Stem: stout, 1-2 m high Inflorescence: staminate and pistillate portions of the spike each 8-15 cm long or longer Flowers August-September Habitat: in marshes, abundant in poorly drained areas


Chara_Family_(CHARACEAE)

Chara Family (CHARACEAE)


*Sphenoclea_Gaertner

Sphenoclea Gaertner


Habitat: 1 West African species; 1 pantropical species.

*Sphenoclea_zeylandica_Gaertner

Sphenoclea zeylandica Gaertner


Life span: perennial Roots: somewhat fleshy Growth form: erect, freely branched Surface: glabrous Height: 0.5-1 m tall Leaves: alternate, elliptic, acute, entire, base cuneate; petioles 5-20 mm long Inflorescence: spikes dense, 1.5-10 cm long, 5-10 mm broad, the rachis completely hidden Flower: calyx and corolla 5-lobed, lobes rounded, lightly erose, curved inward, less than 3 mm long Sepals: sepals green, enlarged to 5 mmm in fruit Petals: corrolla irregular, petals yellowish to whitish, slightly longer that the sepals Stamens: stamens 5, separate Fruit: capsule 2- locular, circumscissile Seeds: seeds yellowish tan, oblong, 0.4-0.5 mm long Chromosome number: n = 12 Note: a weed of rice in 17 countries; shoots locally eaten with rice.


Dodder_Family_(CUSCUTACEAE_Dumort.)

Dodder Family (CUSCUTACEAE Dumort.)


Common name: Dodder Family (Contributed by Gary I. Baird) Roots: Rootless Growth form: twining, parasitic herbs, attached to a wide variety of herbaceous and woody hosts by means of discoid haustoria; achlorophyllous Life span: mostly annual Stems: stems glabrous, usually much branched and tangled, white to yellow to orange Leaves: leaves alternate, reduced to minute scales or lacking Inflorescence: inflorescence cymose, 1- to many-flowered Flowers: flowers perfect, 4- or 5-merous, white to yellowish, sessile or pedicellate, infrequently with subtending bracts Calyx: calyx united, rarely separate, persistent, usually glabrous, often pellucid Petals: corolla tubular to campanulate to urceolate, usually whitish, glabrous, often persistent around the developing capsule, commonly with a ring of fringed, united scales attached to the inside of the corolla tube and alternate with the corolla lobes (infrastaminal scales) Stamens: stamens alternate with and mostly shorter than the corolla lobes, inserted on the corolla tube below or at the sinuses; filaments mostly subulate, usually equaling the anthers Pistil: pistil 1, superior, 2-carpelled and 2-loculed, usually enlarging and distending or rupturing the perianth Style: styles 2, distinct, often unequal Stigma: stigmas capitate, occasionally linear Fruit: fruit a capsule, indehiscent or some basally circumscissile Seeds: seeds 1-4; embryo acotyledoneous Chromosome number: x = 17

Dodder_(Cuscuta_L.) ===

Dodder (Cuscuta L.)


Note: The single genus has the characteristics of the family.

*Cuscuta_campestris

Cuscuta campestris


Plain_dodder_(Cuscuta_indecora_Choisy)

Plain dodder (Cuscuta indecora Choisy)


Common name: Plain dodder Synonym: [C. decora Engelm.; C. decora var. indecora (Choisy) Engelm.; C. decora var. subnuda Engelm.; C. indecora var. subnuda (Engelm.) Yuncker; Epithymum indecorum (Choisy) Nieuwl. & Lunell; Grammica indecora (Choisy) W. A. Weber; C. verrucosa var. hispidula Engelm.; C. hispidula (Engelm.) Engelm.; C. indecora var. hispidula Yuncker; C. neuropetala Engelm.; C. neuropetala var. minor Engelm.; C. neuropetala var. littoralis Engelm.; C. indecora var. neuropetala (Engelm.) A. S. Hitchc.; Grammica indecora ssp. neuropetala (Engelm.) W. A. Weber; C. pulcherrima Scheele; C. decora var. pulcherrima (Scheele) Engelm.; C. indecora var. bifida Yuncker] Stems: stems medium to coarse; 0.3-0.5 mm in diameter (when dry), yellowish Inflorescence: inflorescence a many-flowered, loose paniculate cyme Flowers: flowers 5-merous, pedicellate, 3-4 mm long, commonly granular, mostly ebracteate Calyx: calyx united, the lobes 1.5-3 mm long, triangular-ovate, acute, entire to uneven, sometimes with a nerved midrib, rarely, if ever, overlapping Petals: corolla campanulate, the lobes 1-1.5 mm long, triangular-ovate, erect to spreading, the tip often inflexed, acute, entire to granulate, often with a nerved midrib; stamens shorter than the corolla lobes Stamens: filaments slender, equal to the anthers, these oblong to triangular, 0.7 mm long; infrastaminal scales inserted or slightly exserted, abundantly fringed Ovary: ovary globose to slightly ovoid Styles: styles 0.5-1.5 mm long; stigmas capitate Fruit: capsules globose, the apical depression evident, often slightly thickened apically, indehiscent Seeds: seeds mostly 4, oval Habitat: Widespread throughout the U. S. and tropical America..

*Cuscuta_planiflora

Cuscuta planiflora



Dogbane_Family_(APOCYNACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Dogbane Family (APOCYNACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Dogbane Family Life span: perennial shrubs, trailing vines, and herbs Growth form: stem erect or trailing Leaves: opposite, alternate, or sometimes whorled, entire, estipulate Flowers: regular, perfect, solitary and axillary, or cymose to paniculate Calyx: 5-lobed, imbricate in bud, frequently with glandular appendages within Flower: 5-lobed corolla, convolute and often twisted in bud, salverform to urceolate or campanulate, the tube often with appendages within Stamens: 5, alternate with the corolla lobes, inserted on the throat or tube Anthers: 4-loculed, often connivent around the stigma Pistil: superior, the carpels 2, distinct or united apically, each 1-loculed Style: simple or divided Fruit: fruit of 2 follicles Seed: seeds commonly comose Chromosome number: x = 8-12+

Perennial_Herbs_(Apocynum_L.)

Perennial Herbs (Apocynum L.)


Life span: perennial herbs Roots: reproducing asexually from gemiferous roots Stems: branching Leaves: opposite or rarely verticillate, not glandular, often mucronate Flowers: small and pale, few to many on short pedicels in terminal or axillary cymes Calyx: 5-parted mearly to the base, the lobes equal, scarcely imbricate Flower: corolla campanulate to urceolate or cylindrical, the tube short with 5 small sagittate appendages at the base opposite the lobes, the limb 5-parted Stamens: attached at corolla base Anthers: connivent and agglutinated to the stigma, with an enlarged narrowly 2-lobed connective, the pollen grains maintained within persistent tetrads Ovary: separate carpels, ovules numerous Stigma: sessile, mostly ovoid-fusiform Follicles: 2, slender, terete Seeds: numerous, truncate, comose Note: At least some species of this genus are considered to be poisonous.

Dogbane_(Apocynum_cannabinum_L.)

Dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum L.)


Common name: Dogbane Growth form: stems erect or ascending Height: 3-9 dm tall Stems: the branches opposite or subopposite Surface: herbage glabrous or pubescent Leaves: opposite or whorled, petiolate or the lowermost subsessile, ascending or somewhat spreading, ovate to lanceolate, 2-14 cm long, 1-7 cm wide, glabrous above, more or less densely pilosulous to tomentose beneath, or tomentose throughout Calyx: lobes lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, 3-4 mm long, glabrous Flower: corolla cylindric to urceolate, 3-6 mm long, white to greenish, the lobes erect or somewhat spreading Fruit: fruit a follicle; 12-20 cm long, glabrous, pendulous at maturity Habitat: roadsides, fields, streambanks and distributed sites mainly in riparian communities; widespread in the U.S. and Canada.


Evening-primrose_Family_(ONAGRACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Evening-primrose Family (ONAGRACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Evening-primrose Family Growth form: herbs, or rarely woody plants Roots: Caulescent or acaulescent Leaves: leaves alternate, opposite, or basal Flowers: flowers perfect; hypanthium adnate to the ovary and usually prolonged beyond Sepals: sepals 4 or 2 Petals: petals distinct, 4 or 2 (0 in some Boisduvalia), inserted near or at the summit of the hypanthium Stamens: stamens as many or twice as many as the petals Ovary: ovary inferior, usually 4-loculed Styles: styles 1 Stigma: stigma capitate, 4-lobed, or discoid Fruit: fruit a capsule, nut, or berry Chromosome number: x = 6-18

Willow-herb_(Epilobium_L.)

Willow-herb (Epilobium L.)


Life span: perennial, or less commonly, annual Growth for: herbs Roots: rhizomes, stolons, bulblike offsets (turions), and taproots or fibrous roots Growth form: stems decumbent to ascending or erect Leaves: leaves all opposite, the upper ones alternate, or all alternate (or rarely whorled), simple, entire to toothed Flowers: flowers perfect, regular or nearly so, solitary in leaf axils or in terminal racemes; hypanthium short or lacking Sepals: sepals 4 Petals: petals 4, entire or emarginate Stamens: stamens 8 Stigma: stigma capitate, cylindric, or 4-lobed Fruit: fruit a loculicidal, 4-carpellate, 4-loculed, elongate capsule Seeds: seeds with a tuft of hair Note: This genus is considered to be taxonomically complex, partly due to hybridization within the section Epilobium, and partly due to its circumboreal distribution, wherein different interpretations are the result of poor typification of ancient collections and poor descriptions that tend to be inclusive, but not exclusive.

Fireweed_(Epilobium_angustifolium_L.)

Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium L.)


Common name: Fireweed Height: plants mostly (3) 5-20 dm tall Roots: arising from rhizome-like roots that bear buds freely Stems: stems often purplish, at least above Growth Form: basally decumbent to erect, usually simple (less commonly branched), glabrous below, commonly puberulent above Leaves: leaves alternate, lanceolate to elliptic (or linear), 5-20 cm long, 0.5-4 cm broad, entire or nearly so, sessile or subsessile, glabrous or pubescent only along the lower midvein Sepals: sepals 7.5-17 mm long, puberulent Petals: petals 8-20 mm long, pink purple, pink, or rarely white Styles: styles longer than the stamens, pubescent near the base Stigma: stigma 4-lobed; capsules 8-9 cm long, pubescent Seeds: seeds 1-1.5 mm long, the hair white to dingy Chromosome number: n = 36 Habitat: Sagebrush, mountain brush, Douglas fir, aspen, lodgepole pine, and spruce-fir communities; widely distributed in North America

Primrose-Willow_(Jussiaea_L.)

Primrose-Willow (Jussiaea L.)


Common name: Primrose-Willow Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs Surface: smooth Leaves: alternate, usually entire leaves Inflorescence: axillary, solitary flowers Calyx: calyx-tube elongated, the lobes 4-6, persistent Ovary: ovary 4-6 celled Stigma: stigma 4-6-lobed Fruit: capsule angular or ribbed, crowned with the calyx-lobes

Evening-primrose_(Oenothera_L.)

Evening-primrose (Oenothera L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or more commonly perennial Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves alternate or basal Flowers: flowers typically sessile in leaf or bract axils, fragrant, opening in evening (pollinated by moths); hypanthium much surpassing the ovary, deciduous in fruit Sepals: sepals 4, reflexed at anthesis Petals: petals 4, white or yellow, fading pink, lavender, orange, bronze, or purple to brownish Stamens: stamens 8, dimorphic or subequal, the anthers versatile Stigma: stigma 4-lobed Fruit: capsules loculicidal Seeds: seeds lacking a coma

Biennial_evening-primrose_(Oenothera_biennis_L.)

Biennial evening-primrose (Oenothera biennis L.)


Common name: Biennial evening-primrose Synonym: [Oe. villosa Thunb.] Life span: Biennial (or annual to perennial) Growth form: herbs, mainly 3-12 (15) dm tall or more Stems: stems simple or sparingly branched, strigose to hirsute and usually with longer hairs intermixed Leaves: alternate; basal and lower cauline leaves petiolate, becoming sessile or subsessile upward, mainly 3-20 cm long, 0.6-3.5 cm wide, lanceolate to oblong or oblanceolate, acute to attenuate, entire to undulate or serrate-dentate Flowers: flowers few to numerous in terminal, bracteate spikes, self-pollinated; hypanthium 2-4 cm long Sepals: sepals 1-2 cm long Petals: petals 1-2 cm long, yellow, often whitish or orange in age Anthers: anthers 4-8 cm long Style: style protruding 0.8-1.5 cm beyond hypanthium Fruit: capsules erect-ascending, 1.8-4 cm long, tapering Seeds: seeds numerous, in 2 rows per locule, about 1-1.5 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 14 Habitat: Moist, disturbed sites, such as ditch banks, roadsides, and fence lines; widespread in the U. S. and Canada.

Cut-Leaved_Evening-Primrose_(Oenothera_laciniata_Hill)

Cut-Leaved Evening-Primrose (Oenothera laciniata Hill)


Common name: Cut-Leaved Evening-Primrose Stems: ascending or decumbent, 1-7 dm high, more or less strigose-pubescent and puberulent Leaves: alternate; oblong or lanceolate, 2-10 cm long, sinuately toothed or often pinnatifid Flowers: axillary Calyx: calyx-lobes linear-lanceolate, reflexed, much shorter than the slender tube Corolla: petals yellow, 5-12 mm long Fruit: capsule linear, 2-3 cm long about 2 mm thick, more or less pubescent Seeds: seeds strongly pitted Habitat: dry open mostly sandy places


Figwort_Family_(SCROPHULARIACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Figwort Family (SCROPHULARIACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Figwort Family Life span: annual, biennial, perennial Growth form: herbs or shrubs or vines; some parasitic or semiparasitic Leaves: leaves alternate, opposite, all basal or sometimes whorled, simple to pinnatifid Inflorescence: inflorescence of spikes, panicles, thyrsoid panicles or in some the flowers solitary on leaf axils or on long slender pedicels Bracts: bracts foliaceous to reduced Calyx: calyx lobes 4 or 5 (rarely 2), distinct or united Petals: corolla sympetalous, regular or bilabiate, some saccate at the base or spurred, 4- or 5-lobed, commonly 2-lipped, tubular, rotate to campanulate Stamens: stamens epipetalous, alternate with the corolla lobes, 4 and didynamous, or 4 fertile and 1 sterile, or 5 fertile (Verbascum), the anthers 2-celled, equal or unequal Ovary: ovary superior, 2-locular Style: style 1, sometimes forked into 2 stigmatic lobes Fruit: fruit a capsule Seeds: seeds usually many and small or rarely few, winged or wingless Chromosome number: x = 6+

Water_Hyssop_(Bacopa_Aubl.)

Water Hyssop (Bacopa Aubl.)


Common name: Water Hyssop Growth form: aquatic or subaquatic perennial herbs with prostate or floating stems Surface: pilose to hispid in young parts Roots: rooting at the lower nodes Leaves: opposite, sessile, entire, obovate-cuneate to suborbicular, palmately veined, clasping Flowers: weakly bilabiate; calyx 5-parted Seeds: seeds numerous and small, ellipsoid to cylindrical, with longitudinally arranged reticulations Habitat: floating in shallow ponds, lake & slow-moving streans & on muddy banks

Butter-and-eggs_(Linaria_Miller)

Butter & eggs (Linaria Miller)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs, stems erect, Stems: leafy, simple or branched Leaves: leaves alternate (the lower sometimes opposite), entire, sessile Inflorescence: inflorescence terminal racemes Calyx: calyx of 5 more or less distinct sepals Petals: corolla yellow, blue or white, strongly bilabiate, the tube spurred ventrally Stamens: stamens 4, didynamous, included Stigmas: stigmas capitate, united

Butter-and-eggs_(Linaria_vulgaris_Hill)

Butter-and-eggs (Linaria vulgaris Hill)


Common name: Butter-and-eggs Synonyms: [Antirrhinum linaria L.; L. linaria Karsten] Life span: perennial Growth form: herb; from creeping roots Height: 2.5-6.8 dm tall Surface: hairless Inflorescence: elongate, dense with flowers Leaves: mostly alternate, lanceolate, 2-4.5 (5.5) cm long, narrow, linear to narrowly lanceolate Calyx: 3.5-5 mm long Corolla: 13-17 mm long, bright yellow, with a bearded orange palate, the spur 10-12 mm long, mostly straight Fruit: capsule 5-9 mm long, subglobose Chromosome number: 2n = 12 Habitat: Waste places, pastures, and roadsides; scattered over temperate North America; native of Eurasia.

*Striga_Lour.

Striga Lour.


Witch-Weed_(Striga_asiatica_(L.)_Kuntze)

Witch-Weed (Striga asiatica (L.) Kuntze)


Common name: Witch-Weed Surface: hispid or pubescent Life span: annuals Growth form: parasitic on corn and other grasses Stem: angled, erect, simple or virgately branched, 1-4 dm tall Leaves: lower leaves opposite, upper alternate, linear or linear-elliptic, 1-5 cm wide, entire or remotely toothed, sometimes cleft or parted, reduced upward Inflorescence: raceme poorly differentiated, flowers axillary, solitary Calyx: calyx tubular, 10-15 nerved, 7-8 mm long, the lobes subulate, 2-3 mm long Corolla: corolla crimson, strongly zygomorphic, the limb about 1 cm broad, tube slender, cylindrical, 2 X as long as the calyx Stamens: stamens 4, didynamous, included Fruit: capsule oblong, 2-3 mm long, loculicidal, surrounded by the now separate calyx nerves Seeds: seeds minute Flowering: July - frost

Mullein_(Verbascum_L.)

Mullein (Verbascum L.)


Common name: Mullein Life span: biennial Growth form: slightly woody, tall herbs Leaves: alternate, simple Flowers: in terminal spikes or racemes, perfect Corolla: corolla rotate, 5-lobed, slightly irregular Stamens: stamens 5, exserted Ovary: ovary 2-loculed Style: style flattened at apex Fruit: capsule globular, many-seeded

*Verbascum_thapsus_L.

Verbascum thapsus L.


Stems: coarse, 4-30 dm tall, winged, densely covered with matted, branched hairs Leaves: alternate, spatulate, elliptic or oblanceolate, densely woolly with branched hairs, the basal 1-4 dm long, reduced upward Inflorescence: raceme densely flowered and spikelike, 1-10 dm long Corolla: corolla bright yellow, 1.5-2 cm wide

Speedwell_(Veronica_L.)

Speedwell (Veronica L.)


Common name: Speedwell Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs growing in water or wet soil Leaves: opposite or whorled or occasionally the upper alternate Inflorescence: solitary, spicate or racemose Flowers: perfect Calyx: calyx 4-parted Corolla: corolla rotate, 4-lobed, slightly irregular Stamens: stamens 2, exserted Fruit: capsule compressed, usually notched at apex, few- to many-seeded

Common_Speedwell_(Veronica_arvensis_L.)

Common Speedwell (Veronica arvensis L.)


Common name: Common Speedwell Life span: annual Surface: pubescent Stem: stem slender, at first simple and erect, at length much branched and diffuse, 7.5-25 cm long Leaves: lower leaves ovate or oval, opposite, obtuse at both ends, crenate or crenulate, 4-12 mm long, the lowest petioled; upper leaves sessile, alternate, ovate or lanceolate, acute or acutish, commonly entire, each with a short pedicelled minute blue flower in its axil Flower: pedicels shorter that the calyx Corolla: corolla 2 mm broad or less Fruit: capsule broadly obovate, obcordate, 2mm high Flowering: Flowers April-September Habitat: waste places, sterile pastures, and cultivated soil

Filiform_Speedwell_(Veronica_filiformis_Sm.)

Filiform Speedwell (Veronica filiformis Sm.)


Common name: Filiform Speedwell Life span: perennial Growth form: pubescent with numerous creeping stems, often forming large patches and densely matted Leaves: reniform, about 5 mm across, short-stalked, crenate Flowers: pedicels filiform, much longer than the leaves Corolla: corolla bright-blue or slightly purplish, 1 cm broad, pretty Flowering: Flowers April-August

Common_Speedwell,_Gypsyweed_(Veronica_officinalis_L.)

Common Speedwell, Gypsyweed (Veronica officinalis L.)


Common name: Common Speedwell, Gypsyweed Stems: extensively creeping, rooting at the nodes, branches ascending, 7.5-25 cm high Leaves: oblong, oval or obovate, petioled, 1-2.5 cm long, obtuse at the apex, serrate, narrowed into the petioles Inflorescence: racemes spikelike, long, narrow, dense, elongated, often borne only in alternate axils, much longer that the leaves Bracts; subulate bractlets longer than the pedicels Calyx: longer than the pedicels Flowers: pale blue, 4-6 mm broad Fruit: capsule obovate-cuneate, compressed, broadly emarginate, 4 mm high, 3 mm broad Seeds: seeds numerous, flat Flowering: Flowers May-August

Bird's-Eye_(Veronica_persica_Poiret)

Bird's-Eye (Veronica persica Poiret)


Common name: Bird's-Eye Life span: annual Stems: diffusely brached, spreading or ascending, 1.5-37.5 cm long Leaves: ovate or oval, short-petioled, obtuse or acutish, sometimes narrowed at the base, crenate-dentate, or somewhat incised, 8-24 mm long, the lowest opposite, the upper all alternate and each with a slender-peduncled rather large blue flower in its axil Inflorescence: peduncles filiform, as long as the leaves or longer Sepals: lanceolate-ovate Corolla: much exceeding the calyx, 6-8 mm broad Capsule: pubescent, 6 mm broad, with a wide and shallow emargination at the summit Seeds: few or several, hollowed out on the inner side Flowering: Flowers May-September


Frog's_Bit_Family_(HYDROCHARITACEAE_Juss.)

Frog's Bit Family (HYDROCHARITACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Frog's Bit Family Growth form: aquatic herbs Flower: dioecious or polygamous; sessile or borne on scape-like peduncle from a spathe; single or double perianth in the fertile flower forms a tube coherent with the ovary. Ovary: 1-3 celled Stamens: 3-12, separate or monadelphous Stigmas: 3 or 6 Fruit: fruit ripening under water, indehiscent, many-seeded

Frog's_bit_(Elodea_Michx.)

Frog's bit (Elodea Michx.)


Growth form: submerged plants with branching leafy stems Leaves: opposite or whorled, crowded, 1-nerved Flowers: polygamodioecious, solitary and sessile from a sessile tubular 2-cleft axillary spathe; staminate flowers very small, often overlooked because they usually become detached and float on the surface where they open and shed their pollen around the stigmas of the fertile flowers, elevated to the surface by elongation of the calyx-tube; fertile flowers pistillate or apparently perfect; limb of perianth 6-parted Sepals: 3, barely united at base Petals: usually 3, similar or narrow Ovary: ovary 1-celled

Canada_Waterweed_(Elodea_canadensis_Michx.)

Canada Waterweed (Elodea canadensis Michx.)


Common name: Canada Waterweed Stem: slender, 3- 10.5 dm long Leaves: sessile, in whorls of 3 or 4, lower ones in 2's, linear to oval-oblong, 5-10 mm long Sepals: sepals of staminate flowers 3.8-5 mm long, those of the pistillate flowers 2.3-2.7 mm long Habitat: sluggish streams and ponds, particularly in the mountains

Esthwaite_Waterweed_(Hydrilla_Rich.)

Esthwaite Waterweed (Hydrilla Rich.)


Common name: Esthwaite Waterweed Stems: long, branched, rooted in mud, submerged Leaves: sessile, the lower opposite, the upper in whorls of 3-6(8), minutely serrate, with 2 minute fringed scales at base Flowers: dioecious, solitary from sessile axillary spathe, inconspicuous Petals: petals transparent with red streaks Stamens: stamens 3 Styles: styles 3(-5), simple

Esthwaite_Waterweed_(Hydrilla_verticillata_(L._f.)_Royle)

Esthwaite Waterweed (Hydrilla verticillata (L. f.) Royle)


Common name: Esthwaite Waterweed Stems: to 1m Leaves: 5-20 x 0.7-2 mm, 0.2-0.7 mm wide 0.5 behind apex, with narrowly acute to acuminate apex Chromosome number: 2n = 16 Note: closely resembles Elodea nuttallii but less robust and leaves more per node and with minute teeth above or below base


Fumitory_Family_(FUMARIACEAE_DC.)

Fumitory Family (FUMARIACEAE DC.)


Common name: Fumitory Family Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs with watery juice Leaves: leaves alternate or basal Flowers: flowers perfect, irregular Sepals: sepals 2, bractlike Petals: petals 4, the 2 outer ones spreading at the apex and one or both saccate or spurred at the base, the 2 inner ones united over the stigma Stamens: stamens 6, diadelphous, 3 per set Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1-loculed; style 1 Stigma: the stigma bilobed Fruit: fruit a capsule Chromosome number: x = 6, 7, 8+

Fumitory_(Fumaria_L.)

Fumitory (Fumaria L.)


Life span: annual Stem: caulescent, glabrous and glaucous Roots: taproot Leaves: leaves ternately 2 or 3 times compound into narrow segments Flowers: flowers small, borne in racemes Sepals: sepals 2, small, closely appressed Petals: petals gibbous basally, elongate and more or less connivent, the outer pair dilated apically, the inner pair coherent at the apex Fruit: fruit 1-seeded, indehiscent, globose

Common_fumitory_(Fumaria_officinalis_L.)

Common fumitory (Fumaria officinalis L.)


Common name: Common fumitory Growth form: erect or sprawling herbs Life span: annual herbs Height: mainly 1.5-6 dm tall Leaves: alternate; leaves petiolate, with filiform petiolules and very slender ultimate segments Flowers: flowers few to numerous in axillary racemes Petals: petals reddish purple, the tips dark purple, 5-10 mm long, the spur 2-4 mm long; fruit about 2.5 mm thick Chromosome number: 2n = 28, 32 Habitat: Weedy species of disturbed sites in sagebrush, mixed desert shrub, and mountain brush communities; sporadic in the U. S.; adventive from Europe


Geranium_Family_(GERANIACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Geranium Family (GERANIACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Geranium Family Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves opposite or alternate, stipulate, simple or compound Inflorescence: inflorescence umbellate Flowers: flowers perfect, mostly regular Sepals: 5, distinct Petals: petals 5, distinct Stamens: stamens 5 or 10, the filaments more or less united at the base Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, usually 5-loculed Style: style 1, with 5 stigmatic lobes Fruit: fruit dry, with 1 seed per locule, the valves separating from the base and coiling at maturity Chromosome number: x = 7-14

Storksbill_(Erodium_L'Her.)

Storksbill (Erodium L'Her.)


Life span: annual herbs Leaves: leaves basal and cauline, pinnately lobed or parted, opposite Flowers: flowers 5-merous; pedicels commonly recurved in fruit Stamens: fertile stamens 5, alternating with 5 scalelike staminodia Style: style column elongate, the styles bearded inside, spirally coiled at maturity Pistil: carpel bodies (mericarps) spindle-shaped, indehiscent.

Storksbill_(Erodium_cicutarium)

(L.) L'Her. Storksbill (Erodium cicutarium (L.) L'Her.)


Common name: Storksbill Synonym: Geranium cicutarium L. Stem: Erect or finally prostrate to decumbent, .5-8 dm long (or more), strigulose as well as glandular Leaves: 1-12 cm long, doubly pinnately dissected or parted; stipules lanceolate Peduncle: 1-15 cm long Pedicel: 1-10, typicall 6-18 mm long Sepals: 3-6 mm long, mucronate and bristle-tipped Petals: Pink to lilac, 5-7 mm long, spotted Fruit: stylar beak 2-4 cm long; carpel bodies 4-5 mm long, stiffly pilose Chromosome number: 2n=36, 38, 40 Habitat: Widely distributed herbs of open sites in numerous plant communities; widespread in western U. S.; adventive from Europe.

*Geranium_L.

Geranium L.


Life span: perennial, annual, or biennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate or opposite, or chiefly basal, palmately lobed or divided Flowers: flowers often large, showy, borne solitary or in umbels on axillary peduncles Sepals: sepals 5 Petals: petals 5, soon deciduous Stamens: stamens 10, usually all anther-bearing Style: styles much longer than the ovary, curved or coiling in fruit Note: Diagnostic criteria have been based previously on such features as kind of pubescence and its position on plant parts, but those features do not appear to be of primary diagnostic value. Thus, keys are difficult to compose that will allow accurate identification of all specimens. Because of these factors the following key is tentative at best. In addition to the indigenous and weedy species keyed herein, there is a cultivated species, G. sanguineum L., which grows in compact, rounded clumps and typically has purple flowers.


Goosefoot_Family_(CHENOPODIACEAE_Vent.)

Goosefoot Family (CHENOPODIACEAE Vent.)


Common name: Goosefoot Family Growth form: herbs, subshrubs, or shrubs Surface: often succulent or scurfy Leaves: leaves simple, alternate or opposite, estipulate Flowers: flowers inconspicuous, monoecious, dioecious, polygamous, or perfect Calyx: calyx persistent, 1- to 5-lobed, enclosing the fruit, or lacking in some pistillate flowers Petals: corolla none Stamens: stamens opposite the calyx lobes and as many or fewer Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, with 1-3 stigmas, 1-loculed and 1-ovuled Fruit: fruit a utricle Chromosome number: x = 6-9

Goosefoot_(Chenopodium_L.)

Goosefoot (Chenopodium L.)


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Surface: glabrous, pubescent, glandular, or farinose (mealy) Leaves: leaves alternate, flat, entire, toothed, or lobed; lanceolate Flowers: flowers perfect or some pistillate only, ebracteate, usually in cymes, variously arranged in spicate or paniculate inflorescences Calyx: calyx segments usually 4 or 5, persistent, flat or keeled, more or less covering the fruit, rarely becoming fleshy Stamens: stamens commonly 5 Styles: styles 2 (3) Seeds: seeds lenticular, horizontal or vertical. Note: The genus is notoriously complex for several reasons. The floral features are greatly reduced and diagnostic characteristics are often based on either vegetative structures or on minutiae of calyx, pericarp, and seed coat, which are often subject to interpretation and might be demonstrated ultimately as trivial. Nomenclature is tangled both within the native and introduced entities, leading to taxonomic treatments that do not satisfactorily circumscribe the taxa as represented by actual specimens. Further, there is variability within the diagnostic features leading to contradictory statements in taxonomic treatments; e.g., with regard to such characters as adherent versus non-adherent pericarps.

Lambsquarter,_pigweed_(Chenopodium_album_L.)

Lambsquarter, pigweed (Chenopodium album L.)


Common name: Lambsquarter, pigweed. Growth form: erect Life span: annual herbs Stems: stems red-striate; simple or more commonly branched Height: 1-10 dm tall or more Surface: herbage more or less farinose, at least when young Leaves: leaves petiolate, the blades 1-6.5 cm long, 0.5-5.6 cm wide, ovate to rhombic-ovate or lanceolate, sinuate-dentate and often subhastately lobed or the upper (rarely all) entire Flowers: flowers in dense glomerules, these spicate in upper axils Calyx: calyx with keeled lobes, enclosing the fruit Seeds: pericarp adherent; seeds horizontal, rounded marginally, smooth to sculptured, black, 1-1.5 mm wide Chromosome number: 2n = 18, 36, 54, 108 Note: Two phases are present, which have been given taxonomic recognition. Var. album Chromosome number: n = 26 Habitat: Weedy species of disturbed habitats at 850 to 2265 m, probably in all Utah counties; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia Note: This taxon has been confused with C. fremontii, q.v., but in those plants having mature fruits the adherent pericarps are diagnostic. Var. berlandieri (Moq.) Mack. & Bush Common name: Berlandier's pigweed. [C. berlandieri Moq.; C. berlandieri ssp. zschackei (Murray) Zabel; C. zschackei Murray] Chromosome number: n = 18 Habitat: Weedy or pioneer plants of disturbed substrates in several plant; widespread in North America.

Narrowleaf_goosefoot_(Chenopodium_leptophyllum_(Moq.)_Wats.)

Narrowleaf goosefoot (Chenopodium leptophyllum (Moq.) Wats.)


Common name: Narrowleaf goosefoot Synonym: [C. album var. leptophyllum Moq.] Height: plants mainly 12-70 cm tall Growth form: erect or the branches ascending, simple or branched Leaves: leaves short-petiolate, the blades mainly 0.7-4 cm long, 1-5 (7) mm wide, linear to narrowly oblong or narrowly lanceolate, 1-veined, cuneate to acute basally, entire Flowers: flowers in loose to compact cymes aggregated into terminal or axillary spicate panicles perianth lobes cleft to well below the middle, keeled dorsally; pericarp adherent Seeds: seeds horizontal, 0.9-1.1 mm wide, black, finely rugulose to smooth Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Shadscale, greasewood, rabbitbrush, tamarix, sagebrush, fringed sagebrush, mountain brush, and aspen communities; British Columbia to Saskatchewan, south to California and Mexico. Note: The 1-veined, narrow leaf blades and adherent pericarps are apparently definitive for this plant.

Nettleleaf_goosefoot_(Chenopodium_murale_L.)

Nettleleaf goosefoot (Chenopodium murale L.)


Common name: Nettleleaf goosefoot Length: plants mainly 2-5 dm tall Growth form: the stems erect or with branches ascending Surface: herbage glabrous or sparingly farinose, especially in inflorescences Leaves: leaves petiolate, the blades 1-5 (7) cm long and as broad or nearly so, ovate to oval or lanceolate, irregularly sinuate-dentate and some often subhastate, cuneate to subcordate basally Flowers: flowers sessile and solitary to clustered in axillary or terminal panicles not much, if at all, surpassing the leaves; perianth lobes free to below the middle, keeled dorsally Fruit: pericarp adherent to the horizontal, rugulose to smooth, sharply margined seed Seeds: seeds 1-1.5 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Ruderal weeds at 730 to 1620 m in Sevier, Wasatch, and Washington counties; widespread in U. S. and Canada; adventive from Eurasia

Kochia_(Kochia_Roth)

Kochia (Kochia Roth)


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs or subshrubs Leaves: leaves alternate (or some opposite), linear to narrowly lanceolate, in some fleshy and terete Flowers: flowers 1 to several, sessile in axils of foliose bracts, mostly perfect, 5-merous, the perianth lobes enclosing the fruit, keeled and horizontally winged Stamens: stamens mostly 5 Stigmas: stigmas 2 or 3 Fruit: pericarp thin, free from the horizontal, smooth seed.

Summer-cypress_(Kochia_scoparia_(L.)_Schrader)

Summer-cypress (Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrader)


Common name: Summer-cypress. [Chenopodium scoparium L.] Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Length: mainly 3-12 (15) dm tall Stems: green, or suffused with red in autumn, simple or branched from the base, villous and often finely lanate to glabrous Leaves: alternate; leaves 0.8-4.5 (6) cm long, 1-4 mm wide, lanceolate to oblanceolate, elliptic or linear, usually 3- to 5-veined, glabrous or softly pilose below (and above) or glabrous above, generally ciliate, acute Inflorescence: inflorescence spicate, interrupted Flowers: fruiting perianth of perfect flowers glabrous dorsally, ciliate, mostly transversely keeled, tubercled or sometimes horizontally winged from middle of the keel; pistillate flowers often lacking a keel Seeds: seeds ovate in outline, 1.5-2 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Disturbed roadsides, canal banks, field margins, and other waste places in salt marsh, sedge-rush, sagebrush, mountain brush, and pinyon-juniper communities; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia

Poverty-weed_(Monolepis_Schrader)

Poverty-weed (Monolepis Schrader)


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves simple, hastately lobed or entire, alternate, mealy to subglabrous, fleshy Flowers: flowers unisexual, polygamo-monoecious, inconspicuous, borne in axillary clusters; perianth consisting of 1 bractlike scale (rarely 2 or 3, or lacking), not enclosing the fruit Stigmas: stigmas 2 Fruit: pericarp reticulately patterned or warty, adherent to the erect seed.

Poverty-weed_(Monolepis_nuttalliana_(Schultes)_Greene)

Poverty-weed (Monolepis nuttalliana (Schultes) Greene)


Common name: Poverty-weed Synonyms: [Blitum nuttallianum Schultes in R. & S., based on B. chenopodioides Nutt.; M. chenopodioides (Nutt.) Moq. in DC.] Length: plants mainly 4-30 cm tall Growth form: the stems prostrate or ascending to erect, simple or much branched from the base Surface: mealy to subglabrous Leaves: leaves 5-50 mm long, the blades 1-15 mm wide, lanceolate to elliptic or oblong, with 1 pair of lateral lobes near the middle, reduced upwards and sometimes entire, the petiole 1-20 mm long Flowers: flowers borne in dense, sessile, axillary clusters; perianth segments 1-2 mm long, more or less acute apically Fruit: pericarp pitted, usually pale; fruit 0.9-1.5 mm broad Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Pioneer plant of open sites in blackbrush, shadscale, mat saltbush, sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, mountain brush, ponderosa pine, Douglas fir-limber pine, aspen, and lodgepole pine communities; Alaska and Yukon to California and New Mexico, east to Manitoba and Missouri; Palmer 408, 409, 1877 ISC Parry!; 94 (xiv).

Russian_thistle_(Salsola_L.)

Russian thistle (Salsola L.)


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, entire, commonly spinulose; lanceolate Flowers: flowers perfect, 5-merous, solitary or clustered in axils of spiny bracts, each with 2 smaller bracteoles, borne in spicate inflorescences; fruiting perianth with winglike, mostly horizontally spreading ridges Stamens: stamens 5, usually inserted at the margin of a lobed disk Styles: styles 2 or 3 Fruit: fruit closely enveloped in the persistent calyx Seeds: seeds horizontal to oblique.


Gourd_Family_(CUCURBITACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Gourd Family (CUCURBITACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Gourd Family Growth form: trailing or climbing herbs, typically with tendrils Life span: annual or perennial Leaves: leaves alternate, broad, usually simple but often deeply cut; tendrils simple or branched Flowers: flowers imperfect, the plants monoecious or sometimes dioecious Sepals: sepals 5 Petals: petals 5, connate or almost distinct Stamens: stamens 5, with 2 pairs often united, mostly connate by the anthers Ovary: ovary inferior Pistil: carpels 3 Fruit: fruit a pepo or bladdery pod Chromosome number: x = 7-14

Balsampear_(Momordica_L.)

Balsampear (Momordica L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbaceous, prostrate or climbing vines with simple or branched tendrils Flowers: monoecious or dioecious; unisexual, staminate solitary or clustered, calyx five-lobed; corolla five-lobed, stamens three, free; pistillate flowers solitary, perianth similar to staminate one, staminodia glandlike or absent, ovary one-locular, ovules many, style slender, stigmas three Fruit: fruit a cylindrical or ovoid berry with many elliptic or flattened seeds

Wild_Balsam_Apple_(Momordica_charantia_L.)

Wild Balsam Apple (Momordica charantia L.)


Common name: Wild Balsam Apple Growth form: creeping or climbing slender long stems often 2m or more, tendrils filiform opposite the leaves Leaves: 4-10 cm wide, suborbicular or reniform, deeply palmately five- to seven-lobed, the lobes toothed, smooth or pubescent, acute to obtuse at the apex, petioles 3-6 cm long Flowers: mostly solitary on peduncles bearing an entire, cordate, or ovate bract near the middle or below, sepals ovate 3-4 mm long, corolla lobes 1-2 cm long, yellow Fruit: berry 2-12 cm long, bright yellow, tubercled, ovoid or oblong

*Sicyos_L.

Sicyos L.


Growth form: Climbing with 3-forked tendrils Life span: annual Leaves: angled Flowers: small, monoecious Calyx: 5-toothed Corolla: 5-parted nearly to the base Stamens: staminate flowers with 3 united stamens Ovary: ovary 1-celled

One-seeded_Bur-cucumber_(Sicyos_angulatus_L.)

One-seeded Bur-cucumber (Sicyos angulatus L.)


Common name: One-seeded Bur-cucumber Stem: angled, clammy-hairy, climbing to a height of 4-8 m Leaves: nearly orbicular, cordate at the base, 5-angled or 5-lobed, the lobes acute, the margins denticulate Fruits: ovoid, sessile, 3-10 together, yellowish, about 1.2 cm long, covered with barbed prickly bristles Habitat: along river banks and in moist places


Grape_Family_(VITACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Grape Family (VITACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Grape Family Growth form: shrubs or woody vines, usually supported by tendrils opposite the leaves or on peduncles, sympodial Leaves: leaves alternate usually palmately 3- to 5-lobed or compound Stipules: stipules deciduous Inflorescence: inflorescence terminal, appearing opposite the leaves Flowers: flowers often imperfect and perfect on the same plant, small, regular, greenish Sepals: sepals 4 or 5, minute Petals: petals 4 or 5 Stamens: stamens as many as the petals and opposite them Style: style short or none Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary 2-loculed, 1- to 4-ovuled Fruit: fruit a berry (grape) Chromosome number: x = 11-20

Virgina_Creeper_(Parthenocissus_Planchon)

Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus Planchon)


Growth form: woody vines, supported by tendrils that clasp or affix themselves by adhesive disks Leaves: leaves palmately compound; leaflets 3-7, coarsely serrate Inflorescence: inflorescence cymose Flowers: flowers perfect or imperfect; disk lacking Calyx: calyx minutely 5-toothed Petals: petals distinct Fruit: berries thinly fleshy

Virginia_creeper_(Parthenocissus_quinquefolia_(L.)_Planchon)

Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia (L.) Planchon)


Common name: Virginia creeper Synonym: [Hedera quinquefolia L.] Height: Vines to 5 m tall or more Leaves: tendrils support vines; tendrils with 3-8 branches, these terminated by adhesive disk leaflets with distinct petiolules, 3-15 cm long, 1.6-8 cm wide, oblanceolate to obovate, lanceolate or ovate, coarsely serrate, pale green and dull above, glaucous beneath Inflorescence: cymes usually with a definite central axis with flowers clusters arising laterally from that axis Fruit: berries 5-7 mm thick Habitat: Cultivated ornamental in western U.S.; introduced from eastern U. S. Note: The brightly colored leaves in autumn are beautiful.

Grape_(Vitis_L.)

Grape (Vitis L.)


Growth form: Clambering shrubs Leaves: leaves palmately veined and usually lobed Flowers: flowers small Calyx: calyx minute, the limb unlobed Inflorescence: inflorescence a compound thyrsoid cyme opposite the leaf Petals: petals 5, usually coherent apically Flower: disk of 5 glands alternate with the stamens Ovary: ovary 2-loculed Style: style short Fruit: berry usually 2- to 4-seeded.


Grass_(POACEAE_Barnhart)

Grass (POACEAE Barnhart)


Growth form: herbs Stems: hollow or solid, closed at the nodes Leaves: 2-ranked, parallel-veined, composed of a sheath enclosing the culm, and a blade, with a hairy or membranaceous appendage (ligule) between them on the inside Flowers: perfect or sometimes unisexual, arranged in spikelets, these consisting of a short axis (rachilla) and 2 to many 2-ranked bracts, the lower 2 bracts (glumes) empty, the succeeding ones (lemmas) bearing in their axils a single flower, and between the flower and the rachilla a 2-nerved bract (palea); the lemma, palea, and included flower constituting the floret Stamens: stamens 1 to 6 Anthers: anthers 2-celled Pistil: pistil 1, with 2 (rarely 1 or 3) styles, and usually plumose stigmas Inflorescence: spikelets mostly aggregate in spikes or panicles at the ends of the main culms and branches

Wheatgrass_(Agropyron_Gaertner)

Wheatgrass (Agropyron Gaertner)


Common name: Wheatgrass Lifespan: perennials Growth form: many with creeping rhizomes Ligule: membranous Inflorescence: bilateral spike Spikelets: solitary, infrequently paired Disarticulation: continuous or disarticulating rachis Glume shape: broad or narrow Glume awns: awn-tipped or awnless Glume nerves: few to several nerved Lemma shape: firm, rounded on the back Lemma awns: awned or awnless Lemma nerves: faintly 5-7 nerved Palea: membranous, about as long as the lemma, usually adhering to the caryopsis Habitat: widely distributed in cool and temperate regions of both hemispheres. Many hybrids

Bentgrass_(Agrostis_L.)

Bentgrass (Agrostis L.)


Common name: Bentgrass Lifespan: annuals and perennials Growth form: low to moderately tall Culms: slender culms Sheaths: hairless; open to the base or nearly so Ligule: membranous Blade Shape: flat or involute blades Inflorescence: open or contracted panicles Rachilla: usually not hairy; usually not extended beyond the insertion of the floret Spikelets: small, 1-flowered Disarticulation: above glumes Glumes: thin, lanceolate, acute to acuminate, equal or unequal. If unequal, the first longer than the second Glume shape: lanceolate to ovate Glume awns: glume tip may be rounded or awn-tipped Glume nerves: 1st usually 1-nerved; 2nd 1 or 3-nerved Lemmas: lemma thinner than or occasionally similar to the glumes in texture. Lemma is whitish to dark purple in color Lemma shape: thin, broad, acute to obtuse or truncate at the apex. The tip may appear to be a little ragged Lemma awns: awnless or awned from the middle or below Lemma nerves: obscurely 3 or 5 nerved. Occasionally the midnerve may be prolonged as a straight to bent awn arising from the back Lemma other: hairless or with a tuft of hair at the base Palea: hyaline, usually small or absent but well developed in a few species Habitat: widespread in temperate and cold regions of the world and present at high altitudes in the tropics and subtropics Caryopsis: narrowly oblong, loosely enclosed by lemma or by the lemma and palea Stamens: 3

Hair_grass_(Aira_L.)

Hair grass (Aira L.)


Common name: Hair grass Lifespan: annuals Culms: blades mostly basal Ligule: less than 1 mm, membranous Blade Shape: thin, subfiliform Inflorescence: open or contracted panicle Spikelets: small, two-flowered Disarticulation: above glumes and between florets Glumes: about equal Glume shape: glumes longer than lemmas, thin, lanceolate Glume nerves: 1 or obscurely 3 Lemmas: firm Lemma shape: rounded on the back, tapers to 2 slender teeth or setae at the tip Lemma awns: awned from below the middle with usually a geniculate and twisted, hairlike awn; awn of lower lemma sometimes wanting or reduced Palea: thin, shorter than lemma Habitat: Native to southern Europe but now widely distributed. In US, grow as weeds of disturbed sites in eastern and southeastern states and also in the Far West.

oat_(Avena_L.)

oat (Avena L.)


Common name: oat Lifespan: annuals Culms: moderately tall, weak culms Sheaths: open Blade Shape: broad, flat Ligule: membranous Inflorescence: large, open, nodding panicle or raceme Spikelets: large, pendulous, usually 2-6 flowered spikelets on slender pedicels. Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: about equal Glume shape: lanceolate, broad, thin, longer than the lower floret and often exceeding the upper floret Glume nerves: 3-11 Lemmas: tough and firm Lemma shape: lanceolate; rounded on the back Lemma awns: usually bearing a stout, geniculate awn from below the notch of a bifid apex; the awn arises from the back of the lemma Lemma nerves: 5-7 nerved Lemma--other: Notched at the tip; often hairy on the callus; the callus is 1-7 mm long, and is usually pointed Palea: 2-keeled, shorter than the lemma Habitat: Native to temperate Europe and Asia Caryopsis: adherent to the lemma and palea. Stamens: 3

*Brachiaria_(Trin.)_Griseb.

Brachiaria (Trin.) Griseb.


Lifespan: annuals and perennials Growth form: stoloniferous or decumbent culm bases Ligule: .5 mm, fringe of hairs Blade Shape: flat Inflorescence: small panicle with 2 to numerous short, usually simple, erect-appressed or spreading branches Disarticulation: below the glumes Glumes: 1st shorter than to nearly as long as the spikelet. 2nd glume and lemma of the lower floret about equal Glume shape: 2nd glume of lower floret acute Glume nerves: 2nd glume of lower floret 5-7 Lemma shape: L. of upper floret indurate, glabrous, obtuse or broadly acute at the apex; margins tightly inrolled over the palea Lemma awns: (L. of upper floret) rarely short awned Palea: L. and palea of upper floret strongly transverse rugose Habitat: Tropical and subtropical regions of both hemispheres

Brome_(Bromus_L.)

Brome (Bromus L.)


Common name: Brome Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: growing in tufts; a few rhizomatous Sheaths: hairless or with hairs; usually with closed sheaths at least half the culm length Auricles: some species with auricles Blade Shape: broad, flat, thin blades, or occasionally loosely rolled Ligule: membranous, often brownish; the ligule edge often appears ragged or torn; the ligule may have hairs or be hairless Inflorescence: compact or open panicle, infrequently a raceme; 1-8 branches per node Spikelets: large, several flowered; shape is flattened or cylindrical Spikelet length: 13-45 mm or more Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: unequal Glume shape: lanceolate; acute Glume awns: awnless Glume nerves: first glume 1-7 nerved; the second glume 3-9 nerved Lemmas: edge membranous Lemma shape: lanceolate; tip with two small teeth Lemma awns: 1 awn, infrequently awnless. The awn often arises from between the 2 teeth of the lemma tip Lemma nerves: 1-13 nerved Palea: palea is shorter or barely longer than the lemma; palea adnate to caryopsis Stamens: 3 Habitat: Temperate and cool regions of world

Buffalo_grass_(Buchloe_Engelm.)

Buffalo grass (Buchloe Engelm.)


Common name: Buffalo grass Life span: perennial Growth form: low (.5-2 dm tall), mat-forming; extensive wiry stolons Ligule: fringe of short hairs to about 1 mm long Sheaths: open; most often with long spreading hairs Blade Shape: flat or rolled leaves, 1-2.5 mm wide, .2-3 dm long, usually sparsely hairy with hairs 1-2 mm long Inflorescence: the inflorescences bearing male spikelets are panicles with spicate branches, these well exserted above the leafy portion of the plant; the inflorescences bearing female spikelets are panicles with several headlike clusters Spikelets: staminate and pistillate spikelets in separate inflorescences, usually on separate plants (dioecious) but not infrequently on the same plant (monoecious). Staminate spikelets 2-flowered, sessile, and closely crowded on 1-4 short, spicate inflorescence branches. Pistillate spikelets 1-flowered, in deciduous, capitate, burrlike clusters of 2-4, these present in the leafy portion of the plant and usually partially included in expanded leaf sheaths. Glumes: Rachis and lower two-thirds of second glume of pistillate spikelets thickened, indurate. Lemma shape: lemma of pistillate spikelet membranous; usually thickened, indurate Lemma awns: L. of pistillate sp awnless Lemma nerves: L. of pistillate sp: 3 Habitat: When growing in pure stands, forms a soft, grayish-green turf. Dominant on Western short grass prairie.

Sandbur_(Cenchrus_L.)

Sandbur (Cenchrus L.)


Common name: Sandbur Life span: annuals and perennials Culms: weak, geniculate-decumbent culms (but a few with tall, coarse, stiffly erect culms) Ligule: membrane with fringe of hairs Sheaths: open, often compressed Blade Shape: soft, flat blades Inflorescence: spikelike panicle Spikelets: enclosed in burs, these sessile or subsessile on a short, stout rachis; burrs of bristles and/or flattened spines (modified branches) fused together at least at the base; bristles and spines usually retrorsely barbed; spikelets 1-8 in each bur Disarticulation: bur readily disarticulating at maturity Glumes: thin, membranous, unequal Glume nerves: 1st glume 1-3 nerved, the 2nd 1-7 nerved Lemma shape: lemma of sterile floret thin, 1-7 nerved, equaling or exceeding the 2nd glume; lemma of fertile floret tapering to a slender, usually acuminate tip, the margins not inrolled Lemma nerves: lemma of fertile floret 5-7 nerved Palea: palea of sterile floret about equaling the lemma. Habitat: Mostly in America; all but 1 American species weedy annuals or short-lived perennials of open, sandy, usually disturbed sites. C. incertus is an annual or biennial Caryopsis: elliptic to ovoid, dorsally flattened

Bermudagrass_(Cynodon_Rich.)

Bermudagrass (Cynodon Rich.)


Common name: Bermudagrass Lifespan: perennial Growth form: low, mostly mat-forming stoloniferous and rhizomatous perennials Culms: much branched, mostly with short internodes Ligule: fringe of hairs Blade Shape: flat, short, narrow, soft, and succulent Inflorescence: 2 to several slender, spicate branches, these digitately arranged at the culm apex; rachis narrow, somewhat triangular Spikelets: sessile in two rows; single floret, the rachilla prolonged behind the palea as a bristle and occasionally bearing a rudimentary lemma Glumes: slightly unequal; second glume nearly as long as the lemma Glume shape: lanceolate Glume awns: awnless Glume nerves: 1 Lemma shape: firm, laterally compressed Lemma awns: awnless Lemma nerves: 3, usually puberulent on the midnerve Palea: narrow, 2 nerved, as long as the lemma Habitat: 10 species, mostly in Africa and Australia; one species C. dactylon, distributed throughout the warmer parts of the world.

Orchard_grass_(Dactylis_L.)

Orchard grass (Dactylis L.)


Life span: perennials Growth form: densely clumped, erect Culms: to 12 dm tall Sheaths: closed along the whole length or open to half the culm length. Keeled. Blade Shape: flat or folded, 1.5-11 mm wide Ligule: membrane, 2.5-11 mm long Inflorescence: panicle 4-20 cm long; panicle with spikelets in dense clusters on short to long, erect or backwards-bent branches; 1-3 branches at each node, each branch .5-12 cm long Spikelets: 2-5 flowered, laterally flattened, subsessile and crowded in dense asymmetrical clusters at the tips of stiff, erect, or spreading inflorescence branches; occasionally purple-tinged Spikelet length: 5-9 mm long Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: unequal to subequal; the first glume 5-6.5 mm long; the second glume usually membranous, 3-6 mm long Glume shape: keeled, hispid-ciliate on the keels Glume awns: pointed or with an awn to ca. 1 mm long Glume nerves: 1-3 nerved Lemmas: firm Lemma shape: lanceolate, keeled Lemma awns: pointed or with an awn to ca. 2 mm long Lemma nerves: obscurely 5-nerved Habitat: widely distributed in temperate and cold portions of Europe and Asia Caryopsis: free within or slightly adherent to the lemma and palea Anthers: 2-4 mm long Stamens: 3

Crowfoot_Grass_(Dactyloctenium_Willd.)

Crowfoot Grass (Dactyloctenium Willd)


Common name: Crowfoot Grass Lifespan: annuals Culms: thick, weak; often decumbent below and rooting at the lower nodes Ligule: 0.1-0.4 mm long or absent, membranous Blade Shape: soft, flat blades Inflorescence: 2 (occasionally 1) to several digitately arranged, unilateral spicate branches Spikelets: closely placed and pectinate in two rows on one side of a short, stout rachis, this projecting as a point beyond the insertion of the uppermost spikelet; 2-several flowered, laterally compressed Disarticulation: often between the glumes, the first remaining on the rachis Glumes: subequal Glume shape: keeled Glume awns: 1st awnless, the 2nd mucronate or with a short, stout awn Glume nerves: 1-nerved Lemma shape: firm, broad Lemma awns: nerves abruptly narrowing to a beaked, usually short-awned tip Lemma nerves: 3, lateral nerve indistinct Palea: well-developed, about as long as the lemma Habitat: Native to the warmer parts of the Eastern Hemisphere, one introduced in the Americas. D. aegyptium is occasional as a weed of disturbed sites and coastal sands throughout the southern US, from N. Carolina and Florida to the West Coast and south into Mexico. Caryopsis: plump, usually subglobose, with a minutely ridged and rugose seed loosely enclosed in a thin pericarp

Crab_grass,_finger_grass_(Digitaria_Heister)

Crab grass, finger grass (Digitaria Heister)


Common names: Crab grass, finger grass Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: erect or decumbent-spreading, stoloniferous culms Culms: 2-10 dm tall Ligule: membranous Sheaths: open Blade Shape: mostly thin and flat Inflorescence: a panicle with 2-20 slender spikelike racemose branches, these unbranched or sparingly branched near the base Spikelets: slightly plano-convex; solitary, paired, or in groups of 3-5; subsessile or short-pedicelled in one or two rows on a 3-angled, often winged rachis; spikelets are 2 flowered; the lowermost floret is reduced to an empty lemma, the uppermost floret is perfect Disarticulation: below the glumes Glumes: 1st glume minute or absent; 2nd well-developed but usually shorter than the lemma of the sterile floret Glume nerves: glumes are conspicuously 3-7 nerved; nerves of glume and lemma of the sterile floret glabrous, puberulent, or long-ciliate Lemmas: lemmas of fertile floret relatively narrow, acute or acuminate, firm and cartilaginous, but not hard, the margins thin, flat, not inrolled over the palea Lemma nerves: conspicuously 3-7 nerved Caryopsis: free of but firmly enclosed within the lemma and palea Habitat: Temperate and tropical regions throughout the world. Most US species grow in moist, disturbed sites.

Barnyard_grass_(Echinochloa_Pal.)

Barnyard grass (Echinochloa Pal.)


Common name: Barnyard grass Life span: coarse annuals and perennials Culms: usually weak, succulent culms Ligule: ring of hairs or absent Sheaths: open Blade Shape: broad, flat Inflorescence: contracted or moderately open panicle, with few to numerous, simple or rebranched, densely flowered branches Spikelets: spikelets arise from one side of the branch;spikelets are subsessile, in irregular clusters or regular rows; two flowers per spikelet; the lowermost floret is sterile; the uppermost floret is perfect Disarticulation: below glumes Glumes: membranous; first well developed but much shorter than the second glume; second glume of the sterile floret about equal to the lemma Glume shape: glume of sterile floret usually with stout spicules and long or short hairs, these often glandular-pustulate at the base; 2nd glume and lemma of sterile floret about equal Glume awns: acute or slightly awned; 2nd glume and lemma of sterile floret acute, short-awned or with a long, flexuous awn Lemmas: lemma of sterile floret usually with stout spicules and long or short hairs, these often glandular-pustulate at the base Lemma shape: lemma of the fertile floret indurate, smooth and shiny, with inrolled margins and usually an abruptly pointed apex Palea: palea of fertile floret similar to the lemma in texture, broad but narrowing to a pointed tip that is free from the lemma margins Habitat: Throughout warmer regions of world. Widespread and weedy on moist, disturbed sites throughout the US are populations of the European species E. crusgalli and the closely related native species E. muricata. Caryopsis: free of but firmly enclosed within the lemma and palea, broadly ellipsoidal to spherical Stamens: 3

Crowfoot_grass,_Goosegrass_(Eleusine_Gaertner)

Crowfoot grass, Goosegrass (Eleusine Gaertner)


Common names: Crowfoot grass, Goosegrass Life span: annuals Growth form: low, spreading Culms: thick, weak culms Ligule: short, lacerate membrane Sheaths: open Blade Shape: soft, flat or folded, succulent Inflorescence: two (occasionally one) to several branches digitately arranged at the culm apex; one or two branches frequently developed below the apical cluster Spikelets: sessile in two closely overlapping rows; 3 to 10 flowered Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: unequal; the first shorter than the second Glume shape: firm, acute Glume nerves: 1st 1-nerved; 2nd 3-7 nerved Lemma shape: acute, broadly keeled Lemma awns: awnless or mucronate Lemma nerves: 3, the lateral nerves very close to the midnerve. Palea: shorter than the lemma Habitat: Mostly of warmer regions of the Old World. E. indica, a common weed of the tropics and subtropics of both hemispheres, if frequent on disturbed soil in the southern US and has been recorded throughout the country except in the Northwest. Caryopsis: plump, with a minutely transversely ruguse seed loosely enclosed in a thin pericarp; seed 3 angled, with horizontal stripes Stamens: 3

Wheatgrass_(Elymus_L.)

Elymus L.


Life span: perennials Growth form: cespitose or rhizomatous Ligule: membranous, truncate to obtuse Auricles: with or without auricles Sheaths: open Blade Shape: flat or rolled Inflorescence: spike Spikelets: in pairs of threes at nodes (some species with 1 spikelets per node and others with 4-6 or more spikelets per node Disarticulation: above glumes and between florets Glumes: equal or nearly so Glume shape: firm, narrow, subulate to broad and soft Glume awns: awned or awnless Glume nerves: 1-several nerved Lemmas: equaling the 2nd glume or longer Lemma shape: rounded on the back Lemma awns: short or long awn, less frequently awnless Lemma nerves: 5-7 nerved Palea: well-developed Habitat: Cool and temperate regions of n. hemisphere; hybrids common Caryopsis: adherent to the palea and often to the lemma; elliptical Stamens: 3

Lovegrass_(Eragostis_Wolf.)

Lovegrass (Eragrostis Wolf)


Common name: Lovegrass Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: cespitose; a few with rhizomes Ligule: a ring of hairs, or rarely membranous Sheaths: open, often long-hairy at the summit Blade Shape: flat or folded to involute Inflorescence: an open (infrequently contracted) panicle Spikelets: round in cross section or flattened; 3 to 40 flowered; pale green or gray to nearly black Disarticulation: glumes, lemmas, and mature caryopsis usually early deciduous, the paleas persistent on the rachilla Glumes: usually membranous; unequal, shorter than the lemmas Glume awns: awnless Glume nerves: 1-3 Lemmas: usually membranous Lemma shape: acute or acuminate on the apex, keeled or rounded on the back Lemma awns: awnless Lemma nerves: 3 usually conspicuous nerves; nerves are nearly parallel Palea: strongly 2 nerved and usually 2-keeled, often ciliolate on the keels, as long or nearly as long as the lemma; paleas persistent on the rachilla. Habitat: Tropical and temperate regions of the world. About 1/2 of E. species are weedy annuals Caryopsis: oblong or subelliptic, typically reddish brown and translucent; rounded or shallowly to deeply grooved on one side, typically falling free of the lemma and palea Stamens: 2 or 3

Cupgrass_(Eriochloa_Kunth.)

Cupgrass (Eriochloa Kunth.)


Common name: Cupgrass Lifespan: annuals and perennials Growth form: cespitose Culms: often branching at lower nodes Ligule: ciliated membrane Sheaths: open Blade Shape: flat, mostly thin Inflorescence: loosely contracted panicle Spikelets: subsessile or short-pediceled on unbranched or sparingly rebranched primary branches Disarticulation: below the glumes Glumes: 1st reduced and fused with the rachis node to form a cup or disk; 2nd glume and lemma of the sterile floret about equal Glume shape: 2nd glume of sterile floret usually scabrous, hispid or hirsute, acute or more commonly acuminate at the apex Lemma shape: lemma of sterile floret usually scabrous, hispid or hirsute, acute or more commonly acuminate at the apex; lemma of fertile floret indurate, glabrous, finely rugose, with slightly inrolled margins Lemma awns: lemma of fertile floret apiculate or short-awned at the apex Habitat: Tropics and warm-temperate regions of both hemispheres. Annuals often grow as weeds of roadsides, ditch banks, low meadows, and similar moist or marshy habitats.

*Festuca_L.

Festuca L.


Life span: perennial Growth form: tufted Ligule: generally less than 1 mm, membranous, truncate, minutely fringed Blade Shape: thin, flat or narrow and involute blades Inflorescence: open or contracted panicles Spikelets: 3 to several flowered Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: unequal Glume shape: narrow, acute or acuminate Glume nerves: 1-3 nerved Lemma shape: thin or firm; rounded on the back Lemma awns: awned from a narrow, entire or minutely bifid apex, or awnless Lemma nerves: 5-7 nerved Palea: free from caryopsis Habitat: Temperate and cool regions of world Stamens: 3

Barley_(Hordeum_L.)

Barley (Hordeum L.)


Common name: Barley Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: low to moderately tall, without rhizomes Ligule: membranous Blade Shape: flat, mostly broad and lax Inflorescence: dense, spicate raceme; rachilla terminating in a bristle which occasionally bears a rudimentary floret Spikelets: 3 spikelets per node, central one usually fertile and sessile, the lateral ones pediceled and usually staminate or sterile; central spikelet 1 flowered; lateral spikelets often represented by glumes only Disarticulation: above each node at maturity, the short internodes falling as a triad of spikelets Glume shape: narrow, usually subulate or awned and rigid Lemma shape: firm, rounded on the back and dorsally flattened Lemma awns: tapering into an awn Lemma nerves: 5, usually obscure Palea: shorter than the lemma, usually adnate to caryopsis Habitat: Temperate regions of both hemispheres

Sprangletop_(Leptochloa_Pal.)

Sprangletop (Leptochloa Pal.)


Common name: Sprangletop Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: cespitose, none with rhizomes or stolons Culms: usually leafy to well above the base Ligule: membranous, more or less entire to jagged Blade Shape: flat, linear blades Inflorescence: panicle, with few to numerous unbranched primary branches distributed along the upper portion of the culm or clustered near the tip Spikelets: 2-several flowered, overlapping and closely spaced on the branches Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glume shape: thin, acute Glume awns: awnless or mucronate Glume nerves: 1 or the second occasionally 3 Lemma shape: apex of lemma acute to obtuse or notched Lemma awns: awnless, mucronate, or awned Lemma nerves: 3, frequently puberulent on the nerves Palea: well-developed, occasionally puberulent on the nerves Habitat: Found in the warmer parts of both hemispheres. 11 native to US. Most species are plants of moist or marshy sites; many are weedy.

Ryegrass_(Lolium_L.)

Lolium L.


Life span: annuals and short-lived perennials Culms: usually succulent culms Ligule: membranous, obtuse to truncate Blade Shape: flat or folded blades Inflorescence: spike Spikelets: several-flowered, borne solitary and oriented edgewise at the nodes of a continuous rachis Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: the first glume absent except on terminal spikelet; second glume usually large Glume shape: (Second) glume large, broad Glume awns: (Second glume) usually awnless Glume nerves: usually several nerved Lemma shape: rounded on the back Lemma awns: awnless or awned usually from broad apex Lemma nerves: 5-9 nerved Palea: large Habitat: Temperate regions

Muhly_(Muhlenbergia_Schreber)

Muhly (Muhlenbergia Schreber)


Common name: Muhly Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: delicate, tufted annuals to large, coarse, cespitose perennials; several species with creeping rhizomes Culms: simple to much branched Ligule: usually with well-developed membranous ligules Blade Shape: various; usually narrow, flat or involute blades Inflorescence: an open or contracted panicle, spikelike in a few species Spikelets: typically 1-flowered, a second floret occasionally produced Disarticulation: above the glumes Glumes: mostly shorter than the lemma Glume shape: obtuse, acute, acuminate or short-awned Glume awns: acuminate or short-awned Glume nerves: usually 1-nerved or nerveless, occasionally 3-nerved Lemma shape: as firm as, or firmer than, the glumes Lemma awns: single, flexuous awn at the apex, less frequently mucronate or awnless Lemma nerves: 3; indistinct in some species Lemma other: short, usually bearded callus at the base Palea: well-developed, shorter than or about equaling the lemma Habitat: Plants of diverse habitats Caryopsis: elongate, cylindrical or slightly dorsally compressed, usually not falling free from the lemma and palea

Panicum,_Vine_Mesquite,_Maidencane_(Panicum_L.)

Panicum, Vine Mesquite, Maidencane (Panicum L.)


Common names: Panicum, Vine Mesquite, Maidencane Life span: annuals and perennials Ligule: membrane or ring of hairs Inflorescence: an open or contracted panicle Spikelets: lowermost floret sterile or occasionally staminate Disarticulation: below glumes Glumes: usually both present, the first commonly short Lemmas: lemma similar to the glumes in texture and usually as long as, or slightly longer than, the second glume; lemma of upper floret shiny and glabrous (in US species), smooth, firm or indurate, tightly clasping the palea with thick, inrolled margins Palea: palea of upper floret like the lemma in texture Habitat: Largest of grass genera. Extremely diverse habitat. Distributed through warmer parts of the world. P. virgatum is tall, robust bunchgrass, adapted to low pririe sites, riverbanks, and swale areas.

Paspalum,_Dallisgrass,_Knotgrass_(Paspalum_L.)

Paspalum, Dallisgrass, Knotgrass (Paspalum L.)


Common names: Paspalum, Dallisgrass, Knotgrass Life span: annuals and perennials (In US, perennial) Growth form: many rhizomes or stolons Ligule: membranous Blade Shape: usually flat, often thin and broad Inflorescence: 1 to many unilateral spikelike branches, these scattered or, in a few species, paired at the culm apex; rachis, flattened, occasionally broadly winged; back of lemma of fertile floret turned towards rachis Spikelets: subsessile or short-pediceled, solitary or in pairs on the rachis Disarticulation: at base of spikelet Glumes: 1st typically absent; 2nd glume and lemma of sterile floret usually about equal Glume shape: 2nd glume of sterile floret usu. about equal, broad and rounded at the apex, infrequently acute Lemma shape: lemma of fertile floret with rounded back; lemma of fertile floret firm or indurate, usually obtuse, with inrolled margins Palea: broad, flat or slightly convex, the margins entirely enfolded by the lemma Habitat: Distributed throughout the warmer regions of the world. A number of stoloniferous species (P. distichum) grow in wet, marshy, or shoreline habitats.

Rabbitfoot_grass_(Polypogon_Desf.)

Rabbitfoot grass (Polypogon Desf.)


Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: low to moderately tall Culms: weak, decumbent-erect, often rooting at lower nodes Ligule: thinly membranous, more or less ovate to oblong, obtuse to truncate, minutely ciliate to toothed Blade Shape: thin and flat Inflorescence: dense, contracted panicle of small, 1-flowered spikelets Disarticulation: below the glumes and falling entire Glumes: about equal Glume awns: abruptly awned from and entire or notched apex Glume nerves: 1-nerved Lemma shape: broad, much shorter than the glumes; apex broad; toothed, often minutely Lemma awns: awnless or with a short, delicate awn from the apex Lemma nerves: mostly 5 nerved Palea: slightly shorter than the lemma Habitat: Throughout temperate regions but mostly in Europe and Asia. Present in moist areas along streams, ditches, spring seeps, and lakes almost throughout the US. Caryopsis: narrowly oblong; free or somewhat adherent to the lemma and palea Stamens: 1-3

Canary_grass_(Phalaris_L.)

Canary grass (Phalaris L.)


Common name: Canary grass Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: perennials coarse, densely cespitose or in small clusters from rhizomatous bases Ligule: membranous Blades: mostly hairless Blade Shape: flat Inflorescence: contracted, usually spikelike panicle Spikelets: 1 terminal perfect floret and 1 or 2 reduced florets below, the latter reduced to scales Disarticulation: above the glumes Glumes: about equal Glume shape: large, usually laterally flattened and dorsally keeled, the keel often with a thin, membranous wing Glume awns: awnless Lemmas: lemma of fertile floret coriaceous and glossy Lemma shape: shorter and firmer than the glumes Lemma awns: lemma of fertile floret awnless Lemma other: often more or less hairy, permanently enclosing Palea: faintly 2-nerved Habitat: P. arundinaceae a tall, rhizomatous perennial, grass of moist meadows Caryopsis: plump

Timothy_(Phleum_L.)

Timothy (Phleum L.)


Common name: Timothy Lifespan: annuals and perennials Growth form: tufted Ligule: membranous to 6 mm long or more Blade Shape: flat blades Inflorescence: short, cylindrical, tightly contracted Spikelets: 1 flowered Disarticulation: above or occasionally below the glumes Glumes: equal Glume shape: laterally flattened, broad, abruptly narrowed at the apex Glume awns: a mucro or short, stout awn Glume nerves: 3 nerved Lemmas: membranous Lemma shape: broad and blunt, much shorter than the glumes Lemma awns: awned Lemma nerves: 3-7 nerved Palea: membranous, narrow, about as long as the lemma Stamens: 3

Meadow_grass,_Blue_grass_(Poa_L.)

Meadow grass, Blue grass (Poa L.)


Common names: Meadow grass, Blue grass Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: many with rhizomes Ligule: membranous, thin flexible Blade Shape: mostly flat or folded, with boat-shaped tips Inflorescence: open or contracted panicle or occasionally reduced to a raceme Spikelets: mostly small, 2-7 flowered Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: relatively broad Glume awns: awnless Glume nerves: 1-3 nerved Lemmas: thin, obtuse or broadly acute at the apex Base of lemma hairless or with long, kinky, cottony hairs Lemma shape: broad, usually keeled and with a membranous border Lemma awns: awnless Lemma nerves: 5, often puberulent below Palea: hairless Habitat: Temperate and cold regions of the world, Extending into the subtropics and tropics as cool-season and as montane grasses

Bristlegrass_(Setaria_Pal.)

Bristlegrass (Setaria Pal.)


Common name: Bristlegrass Life span: annuals and perennials Growth form: cespitose Culms: erect or geniculate, these often branching at the base Ligule: short-hairy or membranous, ciliate Blade Shape: flat and thin Inflorescence: slender, usually contracted and densely flowered; bristly panicle Spikelets: subsessile on main axis and short branches; some or all of the spikelets subtended by 1 to several persistent bristles (reduced branches) Disarticulation: spikelets disarticulating above the bristles Glumes: 1st glume short, the 2nd glume and lemma of the sterile floret equal, or more frequently the second glume 1/2 to 2/3 as long Glume shape: glumes of sterile floret typically glabrous, acute or obtuse Glume nerves: prominent Lemma shape: lemma of sterile floret typically glabrous, acute or obtuse; lemma of fertile floret indurate, rounded at the apex, usually finely or coarsely transverse-rugose Lemma nerves: prominent Palea: palea of fertile floret indurate, rounded at the apex, usually finely or coarsely transverse-rugose Habitat: Mostly in tropical Africa but some in the warmer parts of all the continents. (ca 43 sp in N. Am.) Many of US species are weedy. S. geniculata is a weedy perennial with short, knotty rhizomes, common in moist soils throught the southern and eastern portions of the US and through Mexico.

Johnsongrass_(Sorghum_Moench.)

Johnsongrass (Sorghum Moench.)


Common name: Johnsongrass Life span: annuals and perennials Culms: Many with tall, stout culms Ligule: membranous Blade Shape: long, flat, narow or broad Inflorescence: large, open or contracted panicle Spikelets: spikelets clustered on short racemose branchlets; spikelets in threes at the branchlet tips, 1 sessile and fertile and 2 pediceled and staminate or neuter, and below the tips in pairs of 1 sessile and perfect and 1 pediceled and reduced Disarticulation: below the sessile spikelet, the rachis section and the pedicel or pedicels falling attached to the sessile spikelet Glumes: about equal in length Glume shape: coriaceous Glume awns: awnless Lemma shape: lemma of the sterile floret and lemma and palea of the fertile floret membranous Lemma awns: lemma of the fertile floret usually with a geniculate and twisted awn, this readily deciduous in S. halepense Habitat: Mostly in the warmer parts of America. S. halepense has become widely established as a pasture grass and weed of roadsides and cultivated fields throughout the southern and eastern states. Has been reported from as far north as maine, Michigan, Iowa, and Wyoming, but probably does not persist in the cooler regions. S. halepense develops cyanogenetic compound under certain conditions of growth.

Needlegrass_(Stipa_L.)

Needlegrass (Stipa L.)


Common name: Needlegrass Lifespan: perennial Growth form: cespitose Ligule: membranous, in many species between 1-4 mm Blade Shape: long, narrow, involute, usually in a basal clump Inflorescence: large or small, usually contracted, often drooping panicle Spikelets: 1-flowered Spikelet length: variable in size, but relatively large in most species Glume shape: thin, acute, acuminate or ingrequently aristate, longer than the body of the lemma Glume nerves: 1-5 nerved Lemmas: tightly enclosing the palea and caryopsis Lemma shape: firm or indurate, relatively slender, terete or angular Lemma awns: awned; usually stout, geniculate and twisted, scabrous or pubescent below in many species Lemma other: base of lemma and rachilla forming a sharp-pointed callus, this bearded with stiff hairs Habitat: Widely distributed in temperate and tropical regions of the world. Hybridize freely.

*Vulpia_C._Gmelin

Vulpia C. Gmelin


Lifespan: annual Growth form: tufted Ligule: less than 1 mm, membranous, minutely fringed Blade Shape: narrow blades Inflorescence: spikelike panicle Spikelets: 3 to many flowered Disarticulation: above the glumes and between the florets Glumes: the first often very short Glume shape: narrow, lanceolate or acuminate Glume nerves: 1-3 nerved Lemma shape: rounded on the back Lemma awns: tapering to a fine awn or merely acuminate Lemma nerves: inconspicuously 5 nerved Caryopsis: cylindrical and elongate Anthers: usually 1, infrequently 3, per flower

Rice_(Oryza_L.)

Rice (Oryza L.)


Common name: Rice Life span: annual or perennials Blades Shape: flat blades Inflorescence: open or contracted panicles Spikelets: spikelets 1-flowered, laterally compressed Disarticulation: below the glumes Glume shape: glumes narrow, much shorter than the lemma Lemma: lemma indurate, rigid, kelled, 3-nerved, awned or sometimes awnless, sparsely to rather densely hispid Palea: palea similar to the lemma but narrower and with no midnerve on the back, the two nerves close to the margins Stamens: stamens 6

Rice_Cutgrass_(Oryza_sativa_L.)

Rice Cutgrass (Oryza sativa L.)


Common name: Rice Cutgrass Life span: annual Height: 1-2 m tall Ligule: membranous, firm, 2-6 mm long Inflorescence: panicle rather dense, drooping, 1,5-4 dm long Spikelet length: spikelets 7-10 mm long Lemma awns: lemma mucronate to awned

*Rhynchelytrum_Nees.

Rhynchelytrum Nees.


Life span: slender annual Growth form: slender Inflorescence: open or somewhat contracted but not dense panicles Spikelets: silky spikelets on short, capillary pedicels Glumes: first glume minute, the second glume short-stipitate Lemma: sterile lemma equaling the second glume; fertile lemma shorter than the spikelet, smooth, obtuse, the margins thin, not inrolled Palea: palea well-developed in both florets

*Rhynchelytrum_repens_(Willd.)_C._E._Hubbard

Rhynchelytrum repens (Willd.) C. E. Hubbard


Growth form: culms geniculate, decumbent at base, ascending rooting at lower nodes Height: culms to 1 m tall, usually less Blades: blades flat linear-attenuate Sheaths: sheaths shorter than internodes, pilose-papillose Ligule: ligule pilose Inflorescence: panicle overtopping the leaves, white in early anthesis, fading brilliant red or purple Chromosome number: 2n = 36

Itchgrass_(Rottboellia_L.f.)

Itchgrass (Rottboellia L.f.)


Common name: Itchgrass Life span: annual Growth form: robust, leafy, branching Leaves: broad linear from rhizomatous base Inflorescence: rachis joints thickened, hollow, cylindrical, flanked by the adnate pedicel of sterile spikelet and by the sessile fertile spikelet Glumes: outer glume coriaceous, the inner glume thinner Lemmas: sterile and fertile lemmas and paleae hyaline

*Rottboellia_exaltata_L.

Rottboellia exaltata L.


Growth form: glabrous, solid, at least above Height: to 3 m tall Sheaths: sheaths loose, papillose-hirsute Ligule: membranous, 1 mm, hairy Leaves: blades to 3 cm wide, elongate, with scabrous margins and a prominent white midrib Inflorescence: racemes long peduncled to 10 cm long; bases concealed by spathes Glumes: outer glumes papillose Spikelets: apical spikelets abortive; sessile spikelets 5-7 mm long


Hornwort_Family_(CERATOPHYLLACEAE_S._F._Gray)

Hornwort Family (CERATOPHYLLACEAE S. F. Gray)


Common name: Hornwort Family Growth form: Herbaceous, submersed aquatics Leaves: leaves whorled, dichotomously dissected Flowers: flowers imperfect, solitary, sessile in leaf axils, each subtended by a calyxlike involucre of 8-14 bracts, lacking a perianth Stamens: stamens 12-16 Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, of 1 carpel Fruit: fruit an achene Chromosome number: x = 12 (mostly)

Hornwort_(Ceratophyllum_L.)

Hornwort (Ceratophyllum L.)


The family consists of a single genus.

Common_hornwort_(Ceratophyllum_demersum_L.)

Common hornwort (Ceratophyllum demersum L.)


Common name: Common hornwort Height: stems to 10 dm long or more Growth form: freely branched and forming tangled masses Leaves: leaves whorled 5-12 per node, each usually dichotomously 1 or 2 times divided, the segments linear and flat, antrorsely toothed Fruit: achenes 4-5 mm long, ellipsoidal, provided with 2 basal spines Chromosome number: 2n = 24, 28, 38, 48 Habitat: Ponds, reservoirs, lakes, and slowly flowing streams; cosmopolitan. Note: This plant simulates the algal genus Chara, which has whorled branches, not dichotomously branched whorled leaves. Because of this similarity it seems probable that the common hornwort has not been collected when it was assumed to be Chara, which is widespread and common.


Jewelweed_Family_(BALSAMINACEAE_A._Rich.)

Jewelweed Family (BALSAMINACEAE A. Rich.)


Common name: Jewelweed Family Growth form: usually delicate, succulent herbs, with swollen nodes Leaves: alternate, simple, dentate Flowers: mostly axillary, perfect, irregular Sepals: sepals usually 3, the posterior one petal-like, strongly saccate or spurred at the base Petals: petals 5, or only 3 with 2 of them unequally 2-cleft Stamens: stamens 5, the anthers more or less united aroung the stigma Fruit: fruit a 5-celled capsule without a style

Jewelweed_(Impatiens_L.)

Jewelweed (Impatiens L.)


Growth form: tall herb Leaves: coarsely toothed Flowers: clustered, often of 2 kinds, large showy one which are seldom fertile, and small ones which are fertilized early in the bud and produce capsules which are elastically dehiscent into 5 spirally coiled valves


Legume_Family_(FABACEAE_Lindl.)

Legume Family (FABACEAE Lindl.)


Common name: Legume Family Growth form: herbs, shrubs, or trees Leaves: leaves alternate, pinnately or palmately compound, or simple, stipulate Flowers: flowers perfect, irregular or regular, usually borne in racemes Calyx: calyx 5-lobed Petals: petals 5 (a banner, 2 wings, and 2 keels) or fewer, less commonly reduced to 1 (banner), or lacking Stamens: stamens 10 or 5, or numerous, diadelphous, monadelphous, or distinct Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1- or 2-loculed, 1-carpelled, the style and stigma 1 Fruit: fruit (pod) a legume or loment, sessile, subsessile, stipitate, or with a gynophore, dehiscent or indehiscent Chromosome number: x = 5-14

*Cassia_L.

Cassia L.


Growth form: herbs Leaves: evenly pinnate Flowers: racemose or clustered Sepals: 5, scarcely united at base Petals: 5, nearly equal Stamens: mostly 10, sometimes 5, often unequal Fruit: legume many-seeded

Sicklepod_(Cassia_obtusifolia_L.)

Sicklepod (Cassia obtusifolia L.)


Common name: Sicklepod Life span: annual Height: 1.5 m tall Leaves: leaflets 4-6, terminal pair largest, obovate, widely rounded apically, 2-7 cm long, with an elongate gland about 2 mm long between, or just above, the petiolules of the lowest pair of leaflets; stipules tardily deciduous Flowers: 1-2, or rarely several in a pedunculate, axillary cluster Sepals: sepals unequal, 5-10 mm long, 2-5 mm wide Petals: petals yellow, 8-17 mm long Stamens: perfect stamens 6-7, staminodes 3-4 Fruit: legume narrowly linear, strongly curved, tetragonal, 1-2 dm long, 3-5 mm broad Chromosome number: n = 7 Flowering: August - November

Coffee_Senna_(Cassia_occidentalis_L.)

Coffee Senna (Cassia occidentalis L.)


Common name: Coffee Senna Life span: annual Height: 2 m tall Leaves: leaflets 8-12, ovate or ovate-lanceolate, acute to acuminate, 1-9 cm long, 1.5-3 cm wide with a globose, sessile gland 3-5 mmm from base of petiole; stipules caducous Flowers: axillary, solitary or in few-flowered racemes Sepals: sepals 6-9 mm long Petals: petals yellow, 1-2 cm long Stamens: perfect stamens 6-7, often of 2 distictly unequal sizes, sterile stamens 3-4 Fruit: legume linear, straight to slightly curved, 8-14 cm long, 5-9 mm broad Chromosome number: n = 14 Flowering: August - November

Rattleseed_(Crotalaria_L.)

Rattleseed (Crotalaria L.)


Growth form: herbs Leaves: simple Inflorescence: racemose Sepals: calyx 5-toothed Stamens: stamens monadelphous Ovary: ovary sessile or short-stalked Fruit: legume oblong or plobose, inflated, the seeds loose at maturity

Tick-trefoil,_Sticktights_(Desmodium_Desv.)

Tick-trefoil, Sticktights (Desmodium Desv.)


Common names: Tick-trefoil, Sticktights Life span: perennial Growth form: erect ascending or trailing herbs Leaves: 3-foliolate leaves Flowers: small Inflorescence: raceme or panicle Calyx: calyx-tube short, the teeth somewhat united into 2 lips Stamens: stamens monadelphous or diadelphous Ovary: ovary with 2-many ovules Fruit: loment flat, several jointed, the joints readily separable

Bush_Clover_(Lespedeza_Michx.)

Bush Clover (Lespedeza Michx.)


Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs (or woody at the base) from a caudex Leaves: leaves alternate, pinnately trifoliolate Stipules: stipules inconspicuous Inflorescence: axillary raceme or subpaniculate Flowers: flowers papilionaceous, each subtended by a bract Bracts: bracteoles 2, attached at base of calyx Calyx: calyx 5-toothed Petals: petals 5, pink purple Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Ovary: ovary 1-ovuled, the style incurved and beardless, the stigma small and terminal Fruit: pod short, partially included in the calyx

Trefoil_(Lotus_L.)

Trefoil (Lotus L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or suffrutescent, caulescent Roots: taproot and caudex Leaves: leaves alternate, pinnately (or appearing palmately) compound Stipules: stipules foliaceous, scarious, or glandlike Flowers: flowers papilionaceous, in axillary pedunculate umbels or solitary Bracts: bracts leaf-like Calyx: calyx 5-toothed Petals: petals 5, yellow or white, sometimes suffused with red, the keel long-attenuate Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Ovary: ovary enclosed in the staminal sheath, the style glabrous Fruit: pods flattened or subterete, straight, 1- to several-seeded, dehiscent Chromosome number: x = 6, 7, 10

Birds-foot_trefoil_(Lotus_corniculatus_L.)

Birds-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.)


Common name: Birds-foot trefoil Life span: perennial Height: 1-5 dm long Growth form: with ascending or procumbent stems, glabrous or strigose Stipules: stipules foliar, almost or quite as large as the leaflets Leaves: alternate; leaflets 3, 5-15 mm long, 2-8 mm wide, obovate, rounded apically Flowers: flowers (1 or 2) mostly 5-12, 8-12 mm long, yellow; peduncles 0.5-7.5 cm long; bracts 1- to 3-foliolate Calyx: calyx 3-4 mm long, the teeth subequal to the tube Fruit: pods linear, 20-35 mm long, 2-3.5 mm thick, subterete, straight, glabrous Chromosome number: 2n = 12, 24, 32 Habitat: Cultivated forage plant of moist pastures; introduced from Europe. Note: This species is very closely allied to L. tenuis (q.v.), from which it is not always distinguished by the key characters. Some plants with broad leaflets have as few as 3-5 flowers, and some of those with narrow, acute leaflets have more than 5 flowers. Probably they would be best put together.

Lupine_(Lupinus_L.)

Lupine (Lupinus L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, palmately compound Stipules: stipules slender, persistent Flowers: flowers borne in terminal racemes, perfect Calyx: calyx bilabiate, the lips entire or toothed, commonly with bracteoles Petals: petals usually blue or blue purple, less commonly whitish, yellow, or reddish, the banner variously reflexed, glabrous or variously hairy dorsally, the wings mostly glabrous, the keel glabrous or ciliate on upper (less commonly lower) edges Stamens: stamens 10, monadelphous, with 5 long filaments alternating with 5 short ones Fruit: pods laterally compressed, 2- to several-seeded Synonyms: Refer to Barneby (1989). Note: The genus is notoriously difficult because of lack of clear diagnostic features. Taxa tend to grade morphologically into each other, probably due to hybridization. The basic chromosome number is x = 12, but most of ours are polyploids, and numerous aneuploids are known. Wide ranging perennial taxa tend to intergrade with all others they contact. Because of these problems, and the likelihood of cleistogamy in some taxa, it is not possible to assign all specimens to described entities. Toxins: Several of the species have been implicated in poisoning of livestock. Quinolizidine alkaloids and other kinds of alkaloids have been extracted from the plants. Sheep are the most affected, but horses, cattle, and other animals have also been poisoned.

Alfalfa_(Medicago_L.)

Alfalfa (Medicago L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Growth form: caulescent Roots: from a taproot or caudex Leaves: leaves alternate, pinnately trifoliolate, the leaflets serrate in the distal half or less Stipules: stipules herbaceous, often toothed Flowers: flowers papilionaceous, borne in axillary, pedunculate racemes or heads Bracts: bracts subulate Calyx: calyx 5-toothed Petals: petals 5, yellow, white, blue, pink, lavender, or purple Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Ovary: ovary enfolded by the staminal sheath, the style subulate, irritable Fruit: pods curved to spirally coiled, 1- to several-seeded, indehiscent, reticulate or spiny.

Alfalfa,_lucern_(Medicago_sativa_L.)

Alfalfa, lucern (Medicago sativa L.)


Common name: Alfalfa, lucern Life span: perennial, or functionally annual Height: the stems 4-12 dm long or more Growth form: ascending to erect, finally sprawling, strigulose Stipules: stipules entire or toothed, 4-12 mm long, persistent Leaves: alternate; leaves short-petiolate, the leaflets elliptic to oblanceolate, 8-40 mm long, 2-15 mm wide, apically few-toothed, pubescent Inflorescence: racemes 6- to 25-flowered, 10-35 mm long or more; peduncles often surpassing the subtending leaves Flowers: flowers 6-10 mm long, blue, lavender, pink, purple, or white Calyx: calyx campanulate to short-cylindric, the tube 1.5-2.5 mm long, the lance-subulate teeth 2-4 mm long Fruit: pods spirally coiled, unarmed, several-seeded Chromosome number: 2n = 16, 32, 64 Habitat: Forage plant introduced to the U. S., escaping and persisting, now almost or quite cosmopolitan; introduced from Europe. Note: Alfalfa has been grown since antiquity in the Old World. Despite its wide use for forage, both cattle and sheep have been poisoned by alfalfa, especially when the plants are young and growing actively, or by tender, leafy, second and third crop hay.

Sweet_Clover_(Melilotus_L.)

Sweet Clover (Melilotus L.)


Life span: annual or biennial herbs Growth form: caulescent Roots: stout taproot Leaves: leaves alternate, pinnately trifoliolate, the leaflets dentate- serrate in the distal half or more Stipules: stipules herbaceous, distinct, subulate, entire or hastately lobed Flowers: flowers papilionaceous, borne in axillary, pedunculate racemes Bracts: bracts subulate Calyx: calyx 5-toothed Petals: petals 5, white or yellow, the keel obtuse Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Ovary: ovary enfolded by the staminal sheath, the style subulate, not irritable Fruit: pods straight, ovoid, reticulately veined or cross-ribbed, unarmed, glabrous, 1- to 2-seeded, indehiscent Chromosome number: x = 8

Kudzu_(Pueraria_DC.)

Kudzu (Pueraria DC.)


Growth form: twining herbs or shrubs Leaves: 3-foliolate Flowers: large, in long and dense racemes Calyx: campanulate, 5- toothed Petals: standard usually spurred at the base Stamens: monadelphous Fruit: legume flat, linear, many-seeded

Kudzu_Vine_(Pueraria_lobata_(Willd.)_Ohwi)

Kudzu Vine (Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi)


Common name: Kudzu Vine Life span: perennial Roots: large tuberous starchy roots, making a very vigorous growth (to 18 m. in a single season) of slender hairy stems Leaves: leaflets rhombic-ovate to nearly orbicular, variously lobed, entire, ciliate Flowers: dark purple, not showy Legume: large and flat

Sesbania_Scop.

Sesbania Scop.


Life span: annual Surface: plants glabrous; stems tall, erect sparingly branched, leafy Leaves: bright green, elongate, pinnate, the leaflets numerous, narrow, oblong or elliptic Flowers: in axillary few-flowered racemes; corolla pale yellow, usulaly streaked and spotted with brown-purple Fruit: pods long, very slender, dehiscent, with cross partitions between numerous oblong seeds

*Sesbania_exaltata_(Raf.)_Rydberg_ex_A._W._Hill

Sesbania exaltata (Raf.) Rydberg ex A. W. Hill


Life span: annual Stem: glabrous, 0.7-2 m tall Leaves: even-pinnate, 1-3 dm long; leaflets 20-70, entire, narrowly oblong to linear-elliptic or linear, mostly 1-3 sm long, glabrous, somewhat glaucous beneath, estipellate Inflorescence: racemes axillary, few-flowered, 2-8 cm long, shorter than the subtending leaves; pedicels 0.5-1 cm long; bracts linear-subulate, 4-6 mm long; bractlets paired, linear, 3-4 mm long Calyx: calyx glabrous, tube campanulate, 3-4 mm long, lobes 1-1.5 mm long, nearly equal Petals: petals yellow and often streaked or spotted with purple, to 1.5 cm long Stamens: stamens diadelphous, 9 and 1 Legume septate, linear, slender, compressed, 1-2 dm long, 3-4 mm broad, short-stipitate, beaked, 30-40 seeded, glabrous Chromosome number: n = 6 Flowering: July - September

Clover_(Trifolium_L.)

Clover (Trifolium L.)


Life span: perennial or short-lived perennial or annual Stem: caulescent or acaulescent Roots: from taproot and caudex, rhizome, or stolon Leaves: leaves alternate, palmately to pinnately 3-foliolate, or rarely 4- to 7-foliolate, commonly serrate throughout, rarely entire Stipules: stipules membranous to foliaceous, often connate Flowers: flowers papilionaceous, borne in terminal or axillary, pedunculate to sessile, subcapitate heads or racemes Calyx: calyx 5-toothed Petals: petals 5, pink, white, or red purple, withering and persistent, finally investing the pod Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Fruit: pods usually shorter than the calyx, indehiscent, 1- to several-seeded.

Red_clover_(Trifolium_pratense_L.)

Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.)


Common name: Red clover Stem: caulescent Life span: short-lived perennial Height: 18-60 cm tall or more Roots: from a taproot Growth form: erect or ascending Leaves: petioles 0.8-19 cm long; leaflets 3, 11-54 mm long, 8-28 mm wide, elliptic to lanceolate, ovate, or obovate, flat, toothed from near the base (the teeth inconspicuous), long-pilose beneath, glabrous above, obtuse to retuse Stipules: stipules scarious to subherbaceous, 11-24 mm long; heads closely subtended by one or more foliose bracts, these often 3-foliolate, sessile, or spreading hairy peduncles to 3 cm long, many-flowered, 22-36 mm long, 20-34 mm wide, axillary, erect Flowers: flowers 13-20 mm long, deep red Calyx: calyx 7.5-9.7 mm long, the tube 3.2-4.1 mm long, strigose, scarious, the teeth 4.3-5.6 mm long, subulate, pilose Fruit: pods 2-seeded Chromosome number: 2n = 14, 28, 48 Habitat: Cultivated forage plant, escaping and at least locally established; introduced from Europe; Note: This important agronomic crop plant is a common component of seed mixtures for pasture and hay lands. It is of importance as a forb in meadows cut for wild hay, and is commonly found established along roadsides. Bees utilize its nectar to produce fine quality honey. Poisoning of livestock has been reported for this plant.

White_clover_(Trifolium_repens_L.)

White clover (Trifolium repens L.)


Common name: White clover Stem: caulescent; stems stoloniferous, creeping and rooting at the nodes Height: 8-35 cm tall Leaves: leaflets 3, 5-22 (38) mm long, 4-18 (30) mm wide, obcordate or obovate to oval or elliptic, flat, toothed from near the base, glabrous on both sides, truncate to emarginate; petioles 1.8-24 cm long; petioles and peduncles often arising at right-angles to the stem axis, radiating from a root crown Stipules: stipules scarious, 3-10 mm long Inflorescence: heads without an involucre, many-flowered, 10-32 mm long, 15-30 mm wide, axillary, on peduncles 6-33 cm long, these glabrous or sparingly pilose, erect; peduncles often arising at right-angles to the stem axis, radiating from a root crown; pedicels 1-6.4 mm long Flowers: flowers 5-9 (10) mm long, white or pinkish, fading brown, the lower reflexed in age Calyx: calyx 3.2-5.4 mm long, the tube 2.2-2.7 mm long, scarious, glabrous, the teeth 1-2.7 mm long, subulate, glabrous Fruit: pods 1- to 3-seeded Chromosome number: 2n = 16, 22, 30, 32 Habitat: Commonly grown forage and pasture plant now established both in weedy open sites and in native plant communities; introduced from Europe Note: White clover has also been implicated in animal poisoning

Vetch_(Vicia_L.)

Vetch (Vicia L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs; clambering, trailing, or climbing Leaves: leaves alternate, even-pinnately compound, the rachis terminating in a usually prehensile tendril; leaflets 4-12 or more, very variable Stipules: stipules herbaceous, entire to semisagittate Flowers: flowers solitary, axillary, or in axillary racemes, papilionaceous Calyx: calyx 5-toothed, obliquely campanulate to short-cylindric Petals: petals 5, pink to white, the wings adnate to the keel Stamens: stamens 10, diadelphous Style: style filiform, bearded around the circumference below the stigma Fruit: pods oblong, 2- to several-seeded, the valves coiling upon dehiscence

Common_Vetch_(Vicia_sativa_L.)

Common Vetch (Vicia sativa L.)


Common name: Common Vetch Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Roots: taproot Stems: 0.3-1 m long, simple or branched, erect-ascending or climbing, glabrate to strigulose-villous Leaves: alternate; with 8-16 leaflets, terminating in a branched tendril; leaflets oblong to elliptic or linear, obovate, or oblanceolate, 1.5-3(5) cm long, emarginate to rounded or turncate, apiculate, glabrate or sparsely strigose Stipules: stipules semisagittate, often sharply lobed or serrate, lower surface with or without a purplish glandular spot beneath Flowers: 1-3 in upper axils, subsessile or very short pedunculate; calyx tube 4-7 mm long, teeth 3-7 mm long, the lower longer than upper; corolla blue, violet, purple, or whitish, wings wither bluish or reddish; flowers 1-1.8 cm long or 1.8-3 cm long Fruit: pods pale brown or almost black at maturity, 4- to 12-seeded Seeds: seeds 3-5 mm in diameter, olivaceous, yellowish or brownish-black Chromosome number: n = 6, 7

Hairy_vetch_(Vicia_villosa_Roth)

Hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth)


Common name: Hairy vetch Life span: annual or biennial Height: 5-20 dm tall Stem: the stems spreading-hairy Stipule: stipules toothed or entire, 5-15 mm long Leaves: alternate; leaves (excluding tendrils) 2.3-8 cm long Inflorescence: peduncles 1.8-7.5 cm long; racemes mainly 15- to 25-flowered, the flowers declined at anthesis Calyx: calyx 7-7.8 mm long, the gibbous tube 3.8-4.7 mm long, the teeth 3.1-4.3 mm long, subulate, pilose Flowers: flowers 15-17 mm long, pink purple or reddish violet Fruit: pods 20-30 mm long, 7-10 mm wide, glabrous Chromosome number: 2n = 14 Habitat: Weedy introduction in cultivated lands and other disturbed sites, often along fence-rows; adventive from Europe.


Loosestrife_Family_(LYTHRACEAE_J._St._Hil.)

Loosestrife Family (LYTHRACEAE J. St. Hil.)


Common name: Loosestrife Family Growth form: herbs, shrubs, or trees Leaves: leaves opposite or alternate, simple, entire Flowers: flowers perfect, regular or occasionally irregular, solitary or clustered Calyx: calyx 4- to 6-toothed, often with many accessory ones in the sinuses, the tube free from the ovary but closely investing it Petals: petals 4 or 5 (7), borne on the throat of the hypanthium Stamens: stamens 4 to many, borne on the hypanthium margin Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2- to 6-loculed, becoming 1-loculed Style: style 1 Stigma: stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a capsule Chromosome number: x = 5-11

Loosestrife_(Lythrum_L.)

Loosestrife (Lythrum L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Stems: stems mostly 4-angled Leaves: leaves opposite, alternate, or whorled, entire Flowers: flowers usually solitary in the upper axils; hypanthium cylindrical, 8- to 12-ribbed, 4- to 7-toothed, with an equal number of alternating teeth in the sinuses Petals: petals 4-7, attached to the hypanthium margin Stamens: stamens 4-14, borne on the hypanthium margin Fruit: capsules cylindrical, included in the calyx tube, 2-loculed, regular, dehiscent

Purple_loosestrife_(Lythrum_salicaria_L.)

Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria L.)


Common name: Purple loosestrife Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs; erect, much branched Roots: from creeping rhizomes Height: stems 7-30 dm tall Stem: green, with coarse hairs Leaves: leaves opposite or whorled, 2-10 cm long, 4-20 mm wide, lanceolate to rounded or cordate at the base, acute to attenuate apically, hairy Calyx: calyx tube 5-8 mm long, cylindrical, coarsely hairy, the appendage of the calyx twice or more longer than the teeth Petals: petals rose purple, 5-10 mm long Stamens: stamens 10-14 Fruit: capsule cylindroid to club shaped Chromosome number: 2n = 30, 60 Habitat: Cultivated ornamental, escaping and established in moist sites; introduced from Europe.


Madder_Family_(RUBIACEAE_Juss.)

Madder Family (RUBIACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Madder Family Growth form: woody or herbaceous plants Leaves: opposite or whorled, entire Flowers: perfect, regular, nearly symmetrical Calyx: calyx-tube adherent to the 2-4 celled ovary Corolla: corolla various, 4-5 lobed, often pubescent within Fruit: fruit a capsule, berry or drupe

Bedstraw_(Galium_L.)

Bedstraw (Galium L.)


Growth form: slender herbs with square stems Leaves: whorled Corolla: corolla wheel-shaped valvate in bud, white, green, yellow, or purple Stamens: stamens 4 (rarely 3), short Styles: styles 2 Fruit: dry or fleshy, globose, splitting when ripe into two seed-like indehiscent 1-seeded carpels

*Galium_aparine_L.

Galium aparine L.


Life span: annual Stems: lax and spreading or growing upward among other supporting plants, retrorsely prickly on the angles, more or less hispid-pilose at the nodess Leaves: in whorls of 6-8, mostly 2-6 cm long, linear-oblanceolate to linear-oblong, attenuate-apiculate, the margins and midribs below retrorsely prickly Flowers: in sparse leafy clusters; corolla 2 mm across, greenish white Fruit: fruit 2-3 mm long, dry, hispid with short hooked bristles

*Richardia_L.

Richardia L.


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: opposite Flowers: in involucrate cymes, axillary or terminal, sepals four to eight, fused at the base, foliaceous, corolla four- to eight-lobed, funnelform tube short, stamens as many as the corolla lobes, fused near the top of the tube Fruit: fruit dry, mature carpels separating from one another

*Richardia_scabra_L.

Richardia scabra L.


Life span: annual Corolla: corolla 5-6 mm long, lobes less than 1/3 the length of the tube Fruit: fruit tuberculate Chromosome number: n = 14, 28 Flowering: June - frost Habitat: savannahs, fields, roadsides and waste places


Mallow_Family_(MALVACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Mallow Family (MALVACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Mallow Family Growth form: herbs or less commonly shrubs with mucilaginous juice Surface: usually pubescent with branched or stellate hairs Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, mostly palmately veined, stipulate Flowers: flowers perfect (or imperfect), regular, solitary or in thyrsoid cymes or more or less racemose or paniculate, sometimes with an involucel of sepaloid bractlets Sepals: sepals 5, more or less persistent Petals: petals 5, separate, adnate to the staminal sheath Stamens: stamens numerous, united by the filaments (monadelphous) Ovary: ovary superior, 3- to many-loculed Fruit: fruit a capsule or schizocarp Chromosome number: x = 6-17+, 20+

Velvet-leaf_(Abutilon_Miller)

Velvet-leaf (Abutilon Miller)


Growth form: herbaceous Life span: annual or perennial Surface: with stellate or simple hairs Leaves: leaves alternate, petioled, cordate at base, not or only obscurely lobed Flowers: flowers solitary and axillary or in leafy panicles; involucel lacking Calyx: calyx 5-cleft Petals: corolla yellow to orange pink or red Fruit: fruit truncate-cylindric or subglobose, the carpels smooth sided, dehiscent nearly to the base Ovules: ovules 2 or more per carpel.

Velvet-leaf_(Abutilon_theophrasti_Medicus)

Velvet-leaf (Abutilon theophrasti Medicus)


Common name: Velvet-leaf Life span: annual Surface: velvety and cinereous with short, soft hairs Stems: stems robust Growth form: erect Height: 5-15 dm tall or more Leaves: alternate; leaves long-petiolate, the blades 3-25 cm long (from sinus to apex) and almost as broad or broader, orbicular-ovate, cordate at the base, abruptly acuminate at the apex, prominently veined, velvety pubescent with small, mostly 3-rayed hairs Calyx: calyx lobes broadly ovate-acuminate Petals: petals yellow, 6-12 mm long; peduncles shorter than the leaves, 1- or few-flowered Pistil: carpels 10 or more, each with a divergent awn 3-5 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 42 Habitat: Adventive weedy species of roadsides, ditch banks, and other open sites, or of cultivated areas; widespread in North America; native to Europe.

*Acanthospermum_Schrank

Acanthospermum Schrank


Life span: annual Growth form: herb Roots: taproot Leaves: opposite, blades lance-ovate to cuneate-ovate, serrate or dentate Inflorescence: heads radiate, ligule small Involucre: pyllaries few in one series, becoming prickly Flowers: outer whorl of florets pistillate, central discoid, sterile, corollas campanulate, tubes short Pappus: pappus absent, achene somewhat compressed, angled, smooth

*Acanthospermum_hispidum_DC.

Acanthospermum hispidum DC.


Growth form: erect herb Stem: branching Surface: coarse Height: up to 1 m tall, usually less Leaves: 3-6 cm long, ovate-elliptic, shallowly serrate, densely pubescent, sessile, base cuneate Involucre: involucre narrowly campanulate, outer phyllaries elliptic, becoming spinescent and prickly at maturity Flowers: ligules short, yellow, disk corollas about 1 mm long

*Anoda_Cav.

Anoda Cav.


*Anoda_cristata_(L.)_Schlecht.

Anoda cristata (L.) Schlecht.


Lifespan: annual Growth form: herb Surface: sparsely hirsute to hirsute with mostly simple hairs Stem: branched from near base, to 1 m tall Leaves: leaf blades deltoid to trinagular-ovate, triangular-lanceolate or hastate, exceedingly variable even on the same individual, some or all leaves with shallow to deep lobes or division, 4.5-10 cm long, acute to acuminate, irregularly dentate, crenate or entire, truncate to broadly cuneate; stipules linear Flowers: solitry, axillary; peduncles long; involucel none Calyx: often purplish-red, explanate under the fruit, in fruit 2-3 cm wide, calyx lobes narrowly ovate to triangular-lanceolate, acuminate Corolla: corolla pale blue or lavender to violet, petals commonly cuneate, 1-2.5 cm long, retuse Stamens: stamen-column bearing anthers at the summit Pistil: carpels 8-20, united in a ring around a central axis, dark green, the backs separated by pale bands, conspicuously beaked with an elongate dorsal spur Fruit: fruit a schizocarp, flattened and disklike, lateral walls

*Hibiscus_L.

Hibiscus L.


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbaceous or woody Surface: stellate or simple hairs Leaves: alternate, petiolate, obtuse to truncate or cordate basally, lobed to incised Flowers: axillary, solitary; involucel of 5-10 distinct bractlets Calyx: 5-cleft, more or less accrescent in fruit Fruit: loculicidal capsule, the carpels 5 Seeds: several in each locule

Flower-of-an-hour_(Hibiscus_trionum_L.)

Flower-of-an-hour (Hibiscus trionum L.)


Common name: Flower-of-an-hour Height: 1.5-5 dm tall Growth form: the lower branches often prostrate Surface: coarsely hispid-stellate to glabrate Leaves: 3-lobed or more commonly 3- to 5-parted, the main lobes cuneate basally, the middle lobe the largest Flowers: solitary, axillary, mostly 3-6 cm wide Bractlets: usually 10, linear, often coarsely hispid, much shorter than the fruiting calyx Petals: corolla cream colored to yellowish, with a purple center, closing in shade Chromosome number: 2n = 28, 56 Habitat: weedy species of cultivated land; widespread in North America; adventive from central Africa.

*Malva_L.

Malva L.


Growth form: herbaceous Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Roots: from taproots, the pubescence simple to branched or stellate Leaves: leaves alternate, petiolate, usually more or less cordate basally, commonly lobed Inflorescence: flowers in axillary clusters (sometimes solitary) or in subterminal panicles; involucel of 3 narrow to broad persistent bractlets Calyx: calyx 5-cleft Pistil: carpels mostly 10-15 Fruit: fruit a schizocarp

Cheeses,_mallow_(Malva_neglecta_Wallr.)

Cheeses,_mallow (Malva neglecta Wallr.)


Common name: Cheeses, mallow Life span: annual or biennial Growth form: the stems prostrate spreading, commonly 1-6 dm long Surface: stellate hairy Leaves: alternate; leaf blades reniform-orbicular, 0.6-3 cm long (from sinus to apex) or more, and much broader, crenate and not at all to only shallowly 5- to 7-lobed, the petioles to 20 cm long or more Inflorescence: flowers clustered (or solitary) in the axils; bractlets linear Calyx: calyx (3) 4-6 mm long at anthesis, the lobes acuminate Petals: petals white to pink or lilac, about twice as long as the sepals Pistil: carpels hairy, rounded on the back Chromosome number: 2n = 42 Habitat: Weeds of disturbed sites and cultivated land, and likely universal; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia Note: Two similar species are M. parviflora L. and M. rotundifolia L. They are similar to M. neglecta, but have petals subequal to the sepals. Malva parviflora has glabrous petal claws, whereas in M. rotundifolia the claws are bearded.


Milkweed_Family_(ASCLEPIADACEAE_R._Br.)

Milkweed Family (ASCLEPIADACEAE R. Br.)


Common name: Milkweed Family Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs, vines, or shrubs with milky juice Leaves: leaves opposite, whorled, or sometimes alternate, without stipules Flowers: flowers perfect, regular, umbellate, 5-merous Sepals: calyx deeply lobed, the lobes mostly imbricate Petals: corolla 5-lobed or -cleft, the lobes commonly valvate in bud, a 5-lobed crown (corona) usually present between the corolla and stamens and adnate to either or both Stamens: stamens 5, inserted on the corolla tube near its base, the filaments monadelphous or distinct, the anthers united and tipped with a scarious membrane inflexed on the summit of the stylar disk; pollen grains united into waxlike or granular pollinia Pistil: carpels 2, with superior ovaries and styles but united above by the peltate discoid stigma Fruit: fruit of 2 follicles Seeds: seeds many, usually with a long coma Chromosome number: x = 9-12

*Ampelamus_Raf.

Ampelamus Raf.


Growth form: slender herbaceous vine Leaves: broad or very narrow, or stems leafless Flowers: in cymes or in umbel-like clusters, corolla obconic, lobes ovate-triangular, somewhat longer than the tube, corona present, forming a fleshy cup with shallow-toothed margin ascending around the gynostegium Ovary: ovary smooth, follicles glabrous, lance-linear

Honeyvine,_Sandvine,_Dog's-collar_(Ampelamus_albidus_(Nutt.)_Britton)

Honeyvine, Sandvine, Dog's-collar (Ampelamus albidus (Nutt.) Britton)


Common names: Honeyvine, Sandvine, Dog's-collar Growth form: stem slender, high climbing Leaves: slender-petioled, ovate, gradually acuminate, deeply cordate, palmately veined, entire, 7.5-17.5 cm long, 3.5-12.5 cm wide; petioles 2.5-10 cm long Inflorescence: cymes numerous, densely flowered Flowers: flowers 4-6 mm long; corolla-segments lanceolate, acute Fruit: follicles on ascending fruiting pedicels, 10-15 cm long, somewhat angled, smooth when mature Habitat: flood plains, riverbanks, and thickets

Milkweed_(Asclepias_L.)

Milkweed (Asclepias L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs, with milky juice; stems prostrate to erect Leaves: leaves usually opposite, infrequently whorled or irregularly approximate Inflorescence: inflorescence terminal or lateral, umbelliformly cymose Sepals: calyx lobes 5, equal, divided nearly to the receptacle Petals: corolla rotate, 5-lobed, the lobes reflexed, spreading or rarely erect, the gynostegium stipitate to subsessile, the corona of 5 hoods attached to the column and subtending the fused anthers, the hoods cucullate to clavate with various modifications, more or less stipitate to sessile and deeply saccate at the basal attachment to the column, usually bearing an internal horn or crest Anthers: anthers 2-locular, with more or less prominent corneous marginal wings enclosing the stigmatic chambers and with membranous apical appendages; pollinia paired and pendulous from the translator arms, flat and uniformly fertile, enclosing granular pollen with thin hyaline intine Stigma: stigma head peltate, more or less pentagonal Fruit: fruit a follicle containing many compressed comose or rarely naked seeds

Common_Milkweed_(Asclepias_syriaca_L.)

Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.)


Common name: Common Milkweed Growth form: stem stout, mostly simple, finely soft-pubescent at least above Height/length: 9-15 dm high Leaves: opposite; oblong, oval or ovate, 1-2 dm long, 5-10 cm wide Inflorescence: umbels several or numerous Flowers: corolla green-purple or greenish-white, its segments oblong-lanceolate, 6-9 mm long; hoods ovate, obtuse, with a tooth on each side of the short stout claw-like horn Fruit: follicles erect on recurved pedicels, tomentose and covered with short soft processes, 7.5- 12.5 cm long Habitat: fields and waste places

*Sarcostemma_R._Br.

Sarcostemma R. Br.


Growth form: suffrutescent twining or trailing vines Leaves: leaves opposite Flowers: flowers umbellate or cymose Calyx: calyx deeply 5-lobed Petals: corolla rotate to campanulate or salverform, 5-lobed Stamens: stamens 5, the filaments fused into a column, each filament bearing an inflated vesicular segment (corona-vesicle) just below the anther Anthers: anthers 2-celled, the membranous dorsal appendage ovate to deltoid; pollinia solitary in each anther sac, pendulous Fruit: follicles fusiform to clavate

Climbing_milkweed_(Sarcostemma_cynanchoides_Decne._in_DC.)

Climbing milkweed (Sarcostemma cynanchoides Decne. in DC.)


Common name: Climbing milkweed. [Funastrum heterophyllum (Engelm.) Standley] Growth form: stems twining or trailing Height/Length: 1 m or more long, much branched Surface: glabrous to puberulent Leaves: leaves to 6 cm long and 3.5 cm wide, broadly to narrowly ovate-lanceolate to triangular- lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, acute to acuminate apically, cordate to hastate or round-cuneate basally, sparsely puberulent both surfaces, with one or more glands on the midrib near the base Inflorescence: inflorescence umbellate, to 20 flowered Peduncle: peduncle slender to 60 cm long Bracts: bracts linear, minute Pedicels: pedicels slender, to 17 mm long Calyx: calyx lobes ovate to narrowly ovate, 2-3 mm long, pilosulose without, glabrous within Petals: corolla rotate-campanulate, greenish white to purple or pinkish, the tube 1-2 mm long, the lobes ovate, acute to acuminate 5-7 mm long, glabrous within, fimbriate-ciliate, ring of the crown thin, revolute, not adnate to the base of the crown-vesicles, these 1.5 mm long Fruit: follicles fusiform to 7 cm long, attenuate apically, puberulent Habitat: creosote bush, yucca, desert shrub, and hanging garden communities; Texas to California and Mexico


Mint_Family_(LAMIACEAE_Lindl.)

Mint Family (LAMIACEAE Lindl.)


Common Name: Mint Family Aroma: often aromatic Life Span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or shrubs Stems: ordinarily with square or 4-angled stems Leaves: leaves simple, opposite or rarely whorled Flowers: flowers perfect, mostly irregular, borne in various types of cymose inflorescence Calyx: calyx of 5 united sepals, regular or irregular, usually 5-lobed, or the lobes obscure Petals: corolla of 5 united petals, usually bilabiate, 5-lobed, or apparently 4-lobed by fusion of the upper 2 lobes Stamens: stamens 4, in 2 unequal pairs, or only 2 by abortion Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2-carpelled, falsely 4-loculed and 4-lobed Style: style 1, usually bifid apically Fruit: fruit a schizocarp, breaking at maturity into 4, 1-seeded, nutlets Chromosome number: x = 5-11+

Hemp_nettle_(Galeopsis_L.)

Hemp nettle (Galeopsis L.)


Life span: annual Growth form: erect with several-many-flowered whorls in the axils of floral leaves Calyx: about 5-nerved, with 5 nearly equal teeth, spine-tipped Corolla: dilated at the throat, upper lip oval, arched, entire; the lower 3-cleft, the middle lobe obcordate, emarginate

Hemp_Nettle_(Galeopsis_tetrahit_L.)

Hemp Nettle (Galeopsis tetrahit L.)


Common name: Hemp Nettle Growth form: herb Surface: coarse, rough-hairy Stem: stem rather stout, 3-0 dm high, swollen under the joints Leaves: ovate, membranous, slender-petioled, acuminate, coarsely dentate, 5-12.5 cm long, 1-6.5 cm broad Calyx: calyx-teeth needle-pointed, bristly Corolla: 1.6-2.4 cm long, pink or pale purple variegated with white, about twice the length of the calyx Habitat: waste places mostly in high elevations in the mountains

*Glecoma_L.

Glecoma L.


Growth form: low, creeping Life span: perennial herbs Stems: stems leafy Leaves: leaves long-petiolate, the blades orbicular or reniform, crenate Flowers: flowers rather large, blue or purple, in small axillary clusters Calyx: calyx tubular, somewhat unequally 5-toothed Corolla: corolla tube exserted, enlarged above, 2-lipped, the upper lip erect, 2-lobed or emarginate Stamens: stamens 4, paired, the upper pair longer Anthers: anther sacs divergent.

Ground-ivy_(Glecoma_hederacea_L.)

Ground-ivy (Glecoma hederacea L.)


Common name: Ground-ivy Synonym: [Nepeta glecoma Benth.; N. hederacea (L.) Trev.] Roots: fibrous-rooted Life span: perennial Roots: from slender stolons and rhizomes Stems: stems lax, 1-4 dm long, retrorsely scabrous to glabrous or nearly so, pilose at the nodes Leaves: opposite; leaves rotund-cordate to reniform, glabrous to hirsute, the margins crenate, 1-3 cm long Flowers: flowers shortly pedicellate Calyx: calyx narrow, tubular, 5-6 mm long, hirtellous, scabrous, the upper teeth the longer Petals: corolla blue violet, purple-maculate, (9) 13-23 mm long, those with reduced anthers the shorter Chromosome number: 2n = 18, 36 Habitat: Cultivated, escaping, and established in moist disturbed habitats; native of Eurasia, now well established in the U. S.; adventive from Eurasia Note: The species is regarded as poisonous to horses.

Dead_nettle_(Lamium_L.)

Dead nettle (Lamium L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Stems: stems leafy, branching Leaves: leaves mostly toothed, orbicular to ovate Flowers: flowers verticillate in axillary or terminal clusters, purplish red Calyx: calyx tubular-campanulate, usually 5-nerved, 5-toothed, the teeth sharp-pointed, equal or the upper longer Petals: corolla 2-lipped, the tube somewhat longer than the calyx, the upper lip erect, concave and usually entire, more or less hairy, lower lip spreading, 3-lobed, the middle lobe enlarged and notched, the lateral lobes small Stamens: stamens 4, the upper pair shorter Anthers: anthers divergent, with 2 sacs, ascending under upper lip

Dead-nettle_(Lamium_amplexicaule_L.)

Dead-nettle (Lamium amplexicaule L.)


Common name: Dead-nettle Life span: annuals Stems: stems branched from the base; square in cross-section Growth form: more or less decumbent, weedy Height: 1-4 dm tall Surface: sparsely pubescent Leaves: leaves broadly ovate to rounded, truncate, or cordate basally, coarsely crenate, the lower petioled, the upper sessile, 1-2.5 cm wide Flowers: flowers in axillary and terminal clusters Calyx: calyx pubescent, 4-5 mm long, the teeth erect Petals: corolla purplish red, 12-16 mm long, the tube very slender, the upper lip pubescent Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Lawns, fields, roadsides, and other disturbed sites; adventive from Europe, now widely established in much of the U. S. Toxins: The species is considered as poisonous to horses, cattle, and sheep.

Catnip_(Nepeta_L.)

Catnip (Nepeta L.)


Aroma: aromatic Life span: perennial herbs Stems: stems leafy and branched Leaves: leaves truncate or subcordate basally, rather coarsely toothed Flowers: flowers cymose, white to purplish mottled, borne in interrupted spikes Calyx: calyx tubular or campanulate, the tube somewhat constricted above, the 5 teeth deltoid, subulate, subequal in length, but the lower 3 basally joined Corolla: corolla tube longer than the calyx, 2-lipped, the upper lip erect, notched, the lower lip spreading and 3-lobed, the middle lobe larger Stamens: stamens 4, paired, the upper pair longer, exserted Anthers: anthers with 2 divergent sacs Fruit: nutlets smooth

Catnip_(Nepeta_cataria_L.)

Catnip (Nepeta cataria L.)


Common name: Catnip Growth form: stems erect Height: 3-10 dm tall Stems: with ascending branches, canescent-tomentose; square in cross-section Leaves: opposite; leaves ovate to oblong, 2-9 cm long, 0.8-6 cm wide, usually cordate basally, having an overall spade-shape; coarsely crenate-serrate, with petioles 1-4 cm long Calyx: calyx urceolate, very pubescent, about 6 mm long, the teeth subulate Petals: corolla whitish, spotted with purple, 7-12 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 18, 30, 34, 36 Habitat: Usually in moist sites in sagebrush, mountain brush, and pinyon-juniper communities; adventive from Europe, now widely distributed in North America.

*Prunella_L.

Prunella L.


Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from tap or fibrous roots and often with rhizomes Surface; pubescent with multicellular hairs Leaves: leaves petiolate, crenate to entire Flowers: flowers short-pedicellate, borne in clusters aggregated into dense spikelike inflorescences, the bracts entire, ciliate Calyx: calyx 2-lipped, the upper lip shallowly 3-toothed, the lower lip deeply cleft into 2 narrow teeth Corolla: corolla bilabiate, the upper lip entire or nearly so, the lower lip 3-lobed Stamens: stamens with anthers 4, the filaments notched near the apex, the anthers glabrous.

Heal-all_(Prunella_vulgaris_L.)

Heal-all (Prunella vulgaris L.)


Common name: Heal-all Height: stems 0.6-5 dm tall Growth form: ascending to erect or simple; often has rhizomes Stem: square in cross-section; 6 cm to .5 m tall Leaves: opposite; leaf blades lance-ovate to oblong or elliptic, 2-9 cm long, 0.7-4 cm broad, minutely hairy to not at all hairy Inflorescence: spikes 1-2 cm broad, 2-8 cm long Calyx: calyx 6-10 mm long, sparsely villous, purplish, the lower teeth subequal to the tube Petals: corolla pink purple to pink or white, 12-18 mm long, glabrous Habitat: Wet meadows, streamsides, and other moist sites in ponderosa pine, cottonwood, lodgepole pine, aspen, and spruce communities; widespread in temperate North America; Eurasia.


Morningglory_Family_(CONVOLVULACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Morningglory Family (CONVOLVULACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common Name: Morningglory Family Lifespan: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs, vines, or shrubs Leaves: leaves simple or compound, alternate, entire or lobed, without stipules Flowers: flowers solitary or cymose, axillary or terminal, perfect Sepals: sepals 5, equal or unequal, separate or united near the base Petals: corolla sympetalous, regular or nearly so, 5-angled to deeply 5-lobed Stamens: stamens 5, epipetalous Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2 (1-5) -loculed Fruit: fruit a capsule, with 1 to several seeds Chromosome Number: x = 7-15+

*Calystegia_R._Br.

Calystegia R. Br.


Life span: perennial Growth form: prostrate or twining herbs Leaves: leaves petiolate, glabrous, entire or lobed, sagittate to hastate basally Flowers: flowers axillary, usually solitary Bracts: bracts 2, mostly large and leaflike Sepals: sepals 5, enclosed by bracts Petals: corolla campanulate to funnelform, white or pink, with 5 stripes on the outside Stigma: stigmas 2-lobed, lobes mostly oblong or elliptic; ovary 1-loculed Fruit: fruit a capsule

Hedge_Bindweed_(Calystegia_sepium_(L.)_R._Br.)

Hedge Bindweed (Calystegia sepium (L.) R. Br.)


Common Name: Hedge Bindweed Synonym: [Convolvulus sepium L.] Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs Roots: elongate rootstocks Stems: stems trailing and twining Height: stems to 2 m long Leaves: leaves long-petiolate, cordate at base, acuminate apically Flowers: flowers axillary, solitary or paired, peduncle short at anthesis, later elongating Bracts: floral bracts 2, elliptic-ovate, laterally overlapping, 12-25 mm long, about twice as long as the calyx and enclosing it Petals: corolla funnelform, 5-angled, 4-8 cm long, white Ovary: ovary 1-loculed; style simple Fruit: capsule 2- to 4-seeded Chromosome Number: n = 11, 12 Habitat: Moist sites along streams and lakes; adventive from Europe, now widely naturalized in the U. S.

Bindweed_(Convolvulus_L.)

Bindweed (Convolvulus L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Stems: stems ascending to trailing or twining Leaves: leaves petiolate to subsessile, entire or lobed Flowers: flowers axillary, solitary or in loose or congested cymes, both pedunculate and pedicellate Calyx: calyx with small slender bracts or none Petals: corolla funnelform, 5-angled or shallowly lobed, white or suffused with purple Stigmas: stigmas 2, linear, more or less flattened Ovary: ovary 2-loculed Style: style simple Fruit: capsule 2- to 4-seeded

Bindweed_(Convolvulus_arvensis_L.)

Bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis L.)


Common name: Bindweed Life span: perennial Roots: deeply rooted Stems: trailing or twining stems Height: stems to 1 m or more long Surface: glabrous or somewhat hairy Leaves: leaves variable in form, but usually oblong-elliptic to deltoid-ovate, mostly 1.5-3.5 cm long, the petioles slender Flowers: flowers solitary, on peduncles subequal to the leaves Inflorescence: pedicels shorter than the peduncles Sepals: sepals elliptic-orbicular, obtuse, about 3 mm long Petals: corolla open funnelform, white or occasionally pink or lavender pink on the outside with broad vertical stripes, 1.5-2 cm long Choromosome number: n = 12, 24, 25 Habitat: This is a pestiferous weed of roadsides, railroads, fields (especially so in dry farming grain areas), gardens, and waste places; adventive from Eurasia, of cosmopolitan distribution; 72 (iii).

Morningglory_(Ipomoea_L.)

Morningglory (Ipomoea L.)


Life Span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or vines Stems: stems usually trailing, creeping, or twining Leaves: leaves sessile to petiolate, simple or palmately compound, entire or toothed to lobed Flowers: flowers axillary or terminal, solitary to numerous Sepals: sepals 5, commonly laterally overlapping Petals: corolla 5-angled or shallowly 5-lobed, salverform to funnelform, or campanulate, showy; variously colored Stigma: stigma globose or with 2 or 3-lobes Stamens: stamens included or exserted Ovary: ovary 1- to 3-loculed Style: style simple Fruit: capsule 1- to several-seeded.

Ivyleaf_morningglory_(Ipomoea_hederacea_(L.)_Jacq.)

Ivyleaf morningglory (Ipomoea hederacea (L.) Jacq.)


Common name: Ivyleaf morningglory Life span: annual Roots: taproot Height: stems up to 20 feet long Growth form: plant trailing, hairy Leaves: on 2- to 4- inch petioles, various shapes from angular to 3-lobed, 1 ´ to 4 inches long, heart-shaped bases Flowers: blue, purple, or whitish, 1 ti 1 3/4 inches long, in clusters of 1 to 5 Calyx: 5-lobed, hairy at base, 1/3 to ´ inch long and can be 1 inch in length Fruit: globe-shaped seedpod is yellowish and contains 4 seeds Habitat: native of tropical America, found throughout the southwestern U. S. states

Morningglory_(Ipomoea_purpurea_(L.)_Roth)

Morningglory (Ipomoea purpurea (L.) Roth)


Common Name: Morningglory Synonym: [Convolvulus purpureus L.] Life span: annual Growth form: twining hairy herbs Leaves: leaves broadly cordate-ovate, 7-12 cm long, entire, short-acuminate, pubescent Inflorescence: 1-5 flowers Sepals: sepals lanceolate to oblong, acute, 12-16 mm long, pubescent Petals: corolla funnelform, purple to blue, pink, or white, 5-6 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 30, 32 Habitat: Cultivated ornamental, persisting, escaping, and established along fence rows, city dumps, and waste places; widely grown in the U. S.; 7 (i).

*Jaquemontia_Choisy

Jaquemontia Choisy


Life span: annual or perennial Surface: often suffruticose, pubescent with forked or stellate hairs Leaves: petioled, entire, rounded or subcordate at base Flowers: long-peduncled, solitary or in small, loose inflorescences, the corolla funnelform, blue or lavender Sepals: sepals all alike or the outer ones much broader than the inner ones

*Jaquemontia_tamnifolia

Jaquemontia tamnifolia



Mustard_Family_(BRASSICACEAE_Burnett.)

Mustard Family (BRASSICACEAE Burnett.)


Common name: Mustard Family Growth form: herbs or occasionally woody at the base, with acrid juice Leaves: alternate, entire to finely dissected Flowers: racemose or corymbose, perfect, regular or nearly so, with 4 sepals and usually 4 petals these usually clawed Stamens: stamens 6, rarely 2 or 4, tetradynamous Pistil: pistil of 2 carpels, mostly 2-loculed, the two valves usually separating at maturity from the replum, or occasionally indehiscent

*Barbarea_R._Br.

Barbarea R. Br.


Surface: plants glabrous to sparsely hirsute Life span: biennials or rarely annuals Roots: taproots Leaves: leaves alternate, lyrate-pinnatifid to pinnately compound, the cauline ones auriculate-clasping and often falsely petiolate above a clasping base Flowers: flowers ebracteate racemes, the pedicels erect Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, yellow, truncate to rounded apically Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style stout, abruptly contracted to capitate stigma Fruit: fruit a silique, many times longer than broad, linear, only slightly compressed, more or less contracted between the seeds; valves 1-nerved Seeds: seeds numerous, uniseriate.

European_wintercress_(Barbarea_vulgaris_R._Br.)

European wintercress (Barbarea vulgaris R. Br.)


Common name: European wintercress. Synonym: [Erysimum barbarea L.] Growth form: stems erect Height:1.5-10 dm tall Surface: glabrous Leaves: basal leaves generally lobed, mostly 2-15 cm long and 1-3 cm wide, glabrous; cauline leaves reduced upward, auriculate clasping; pedicels 2-5 mm long, glabrous, ascending Sepals: sepals 3-4 mm long, yellowish, glabrous Petals: petals 6-8 mm long, yellow, spatulate, to oblanceolate, ascending-spreading Fruit: siliques 10-30 mm long, 1-2 mm thick, erect or ascending, the valves glabrous, prominently nerved Style: style definitely beaklike, 2-3 mm long Chromosome number: n = 8 Habitat: Riparian or other moist sites in shadscale, sagebrush, sedge-rush, and aspen communities; adventive from Eurasia. Note: This plant is potentially poisonous to livestock.

Mustard_(Brassica_L.)

Mustard (Brassica L.)


Surface: glabrous or hirsute Life span: annual Roots: taproot Leaves: leaves alternate and basal, variously lobed to entire, basal ones often lyrate-pinnatifid, reduced upwardly and petiolate to sessile or auriculate Flowers: flowers in ebracteate racemes, the pedicels erect or ascending Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, yellow Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style slender to thick, mostly well developed Stigma: stigma capitate; fruit a silique, several to many times longer than broad, linear, terete or nearly so, often more or less constricted Fruit: valves 1- to 3-nerved, the apical portion produced into a stout 1- to 3 (5) -nerved beak Seeds: seeds several to many, uniseriate Note: The genus Brassica as a whole contains mustard oils and the plants are occasionally poisonous to livestock.

Rape_(Brassica_campestris_L.)

Rape (Brassica campestris L.)


Common name: Rape Synonym: [B. rapa authors, not L.; B. napus authors, not L.] Growth form: stems erect Surface: glabrous or with very few hairs Height: 2.5-10 dm tall or more Stems: simple or branched Leaves: basal leaves lyrate-pinnatifid, 5-18 cm long, the terminal lobe mostly 2-5 cm wide, crenate-dentate; lower cauline leaves similar to the basal ones, reduced upwards, becoming auriculate-clasping and dentate to entire; pedicels 7-20 mm long, slender, ascending, glabrous Sepals: sepals 4.5-6 mm long, yellowish to greenish Petals: petals 6-10 mm long, yellow Fruit: siliques 30-70 mm long, (1.5) 2.5-3.5 mm thick, the beak 8-15 mm long, 1-nerved; valves conspicuously 1-nerved and with 2 more or less delicate lateral nerves, glabrous Chromosome number: n = 10, 11 Habitat: Cultivated fields, roadsides, fence rows, saline saltgrass meadows, sedge-rush, and other plant communities; widespread in temperate regions of the world; adventive from Europe.

Charlock_(Brassica_kaber_(DC.)_L._Wheeler)

Charlock (Brassica kaber (DC.) L. Wheeler)


Common name: Charlock Synonym: [Sinapis arvensis L.; B. arvensis Rabenh., not L.; S. kaber DC.] Life span: annual Growth form: erect Surface: pubescent with coarse spreading hairs at least below Height: 3-10 dm tall or more Stems: simple or branched Leaves: basal leaves lyrate-pinnatifid to merely dentate, 5-20 cm long, 3-10 cm wide; cauline leaves reduced upwards, short-petiolate or sessile, not auriculate-clasping or, if apparently so, falsely petiolate or leaves sinuate-dentate; pedicels 2-6 mm long, ascending, stout, glabrous Sepals: sepals 4-5 mm long, yellowish, glabrous Petals: petals 8-14 mm long, yellow Fruit: siliques 30-50 mm long, 2-3 mm thick, the beak 7-15 mm long, 3-veined; valves 3 (5) -nerved, glabrous Chromosome number: n = 9 Habitat: Roadsides, fields, and ditch banks; widespread in temperate portions of the world; adventive from Europe

*Camelina_Crantz

Camelina Crantz


Surface: pubescent with forked or stellate hairs Life span: annual Roots: taproots Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire, auriculate-clasping basally; some genus members with lanceolate leaves Flowers: flowers racemose in ebracteate racemes, the pedicels ascending Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, pale yellowish to whitish Stamens: stamens 6, (4 long, 2 short) the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style slender, the stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silicle less than twice longer than broad, obovoid, somewhat compressed parallel to the septum; valve 1-nerved Seeds: seeds several per locule, biseriate

Shepherd's_purse_(Capsella_Medicus)

Shepherd's purse (Capsella Medicus)


Surface: stellate-pubescent and often with coarse simple hairs also Life span: annual Roots: taproot Leaves: leaves alternate or basal, simple, dentate or variously toothed or lobed to entire, the cauline ones auriculate- clasping Flowers: flowers in ebracteate racemes the pedicels spreading-ascending Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, white Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style short, the stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silicle, less than twice longer than broad, cuneate-obcordate in outline, compressed at right angles to the septum; valves reticulately veined, strongly keeled Seeds: seeds many per locule.

Shepherds_purse_(Capsella_bursa-pastoris_(L.)_Medicus)

Shepherds purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medicus)


Common name: Shepherds purse Synonym: [Thlaspi bursa-pastoris L.; Bursa pastoris Weber in Wiggers; B. bursa-pastoris (L.) Britt.] Growth form: stems erect Height: 1-5 dm tall Surface: stellate-pubescent and more or less hirsute Leaves: basal leaves oblanceolate in outline, 2.5-16 (20) cm long, 0.5-2.8 (4) cm wide, lyrate-pinnatifid to merely toothed or subentire; cauline leaves alternate; much reduced upwards, sessile and auriculate Sepals: sepals 1.2-2.5 mm long, often reddish, pubescent or glabrous Petals: petals 2-4 mm long, white to pinkish, apex rounded Fruit: silicles 4.5-8 mm long, 3-5 (6) mm wide, cuneate-obcordate, glabrous Style: style 0.3-0.6 (1) mm long, persistent Chromosome number: n = 8, 16, 20 Habitat: Disturbed sites at 850 to 2930 m probably in all Utah counties; widespread in North America; introduced from Europe

Annual,_biennial,_or_perennial_(Cardamine)

L. annual, biennial, or perennial (Cardamine L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Roots: from taproots or rhizomes Surface: glabrous or with simple hairs Leaves: leaves alternate, sometimes with basal rosettes, simple to pinnately compound, petiolate, not auriculate Flowers: flowers racemose or rarely subcorymbose, the pedicels spreading- ascending to ascending, not subtended by bracts Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, white to pinkish Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style stout Stigma: stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silique, several to many times longer than broad, slightly compressed parallel to septum valves obscurely 1 (3) -nerved or nerveless Seeds: seeds several to many, uniseriate

Whitetop_(Cardaria_Desv.)

Whitetop (Cardaria Desv.)


Surface: pubescent Roots: rhizomatous Life span: perennial Leaves: leaves alternate, sinuate-dentate, auriculate-clasping Flowers: flowers in ebracteate clustered (paniculate) racemes; pedicels spreading-ascending Sepals: sepals 4, caducous Petals: petals 4, white, the apex rounded Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style slender, prominent Stigma: stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silicle, usually broader than long, compressed at right angles to septum, indehiscent or tardily so; valves reticulately veined Seeds: seeds 1 (rarely 2) per locule.

Whitetop_(Cardaria_draba_(L.)_Desv.)

Whitetop (Cardaria draba (L.) Desv.)


Common name: Whitetop Synonym: [Lepidium draba L.; Cochlearia draba (L.) L.; Physolepidium repens Schrenk ex Fisch. & Mey.; Lepidium repens (Schrenk) Boiss.; C. repens (Schrenk) Jarm.] Growth form: plants decumbent to ascending or erect Height: stems (1.2) 1.5-6 dm tall Surface: puberulent to hirtellous with usually descending simple hairs Leaves: alternate; leaves elliptic to oblong, ovate, or oblanceolate, 0.9-9.8 cm long, 0.6-3.5 cm wide, sinuate-dentate to irregularly toothed, the lower ones petiolate, the upper sessile and auriculate, puberulent to hirtellous with usually retrorse simple hairs; pedicels 5-12 mm long in fruit, spreading-ascending, glabrous or puberulent Sepals: 4 sepals, 1.2-2 mm long, greenish, usually glabrous Petals: 4 petals, 2-3.5 (4) mm long, white, broadly spatulate, spreading Fruit: silicles (excluding the style) 2-3.8 mm long, 3.5-5.7 mm wide, erect, glabrous Stamens: 6 (4 long, 2 short) Style: style 0.6-1.2 mm long Seeds: seeds 1-2 mm long Chromosome number: n = 31, 32 Habitat: Cultivated and waste places; widespread in the U. S. and Canada; adventive from Europe

Tansy_mustard_(Descurainia_Webb)

Tansy mustard (Descurainia Webb)


Surface: stellate-pubescent, stipitate-glandular, or glabrate Life span: annuals or biennials Roots: from slender to stout taproots Leaves: leaves basal and cauline, alternate, 1-3 times pinnately compound or pinnatifid, not auriculate basally Flowers: flowers in ebracteate racemes Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, yellow to cream Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style short or obsolete Stigma: stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silique more than (3) 5 times longer than broad, linear to oblong or clavate, terete or nearly so; valves 1-nerved, glabrous Seeds: seeds several to many, uniseriate or biseriate

Flixweed,_bedground-weed_(Descurainia_sophia_(L.)_Webb_ex_Prantl)

Flixweed, bedground-weed (Descurainia sophia (L.) Webb ex Prantl)


Common name: Flixweed, bedground-weed Synonym: [Sisymbrium sophia L.; Sophia sophia (L.) Britt.; S. parviflora Standley] Life span: annual or infrequently winter annual Height: stems 1.7-8.5 (10) dm tall or more Stems: simple or more commonly branched above Surface: softly dendritic-hairy or with mixed simple and dendritic trichomes at least below Leaves: leaves basal and cauline, alternate; 1-12 cm long, the lower 2-3 times pinnately compound to pinnatifid, with 2-6 pairs of pinnatifid pinnae, the upper ones smaller and usually twice pinnately compound or pinnatifid; pedicels 4-17 mm long, ascending, puberulent or glabrous Sepals: sepals erect, 2-3.1 mm long, yellowish, glabrous or hairy Petals: petals 2.2-3 mm long, cream-white Fruit: siliques (10) 12-27 (30) mm long, 0.8-1.2 mm wide, ascending-erect Style: style 0.1-0.3 mm long; seeds uniseriate, mostly 10-25 mm long Chromosome number: n = 10, 14, 28 Habitat: Roadsides, corrals, agricultural lands, sheep bedgrounds, and other disturbed sites in various indigenous plant communities; adventive from Europe Note: This plant was moved readily in sheep's wool. Their bedgrounds in desert areas of the state are often marked by yellow patches when the plant is in flower. The plant moved from summer grazing lands in the mountains to the low winter grazing lands and return. It is a very successful weed.

Pepperweed_(Lepidium_L.)

Pepperweed (Lepidium L.)


Surface: plants glabrous or with simple hairs Life span: annual, biennial or perennial Roots: taproots Leaves: leaves alternate or basal and still alternate, simple, entire or variously toothed or bi- or tripinnatifid, petiolate or sessile, auriculate in some Inflorescence: flowers in ebracteate racemes Sepals: sepals 4, caducous or persistent Petals: petals 4, yellow or white, infrequently lacking Stamens: stamens 6, rarely 2 or 4, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style obsolete or well developed Stigma: stigma capitate Fruit: fruit a silicle, usually less than twice longer than broad, compressed at right angles to septum, dehiscent; valves more or less reticulately veined Seeds: seeds 1 per locule. Note: Measurement of silicle length includes the style.

Fieldcress_(Lepidium_campestre_(L.)_R._Br.)

Fieldcress (Lepidium campestre (L.) R. Br.)


Common name: Fieldcress. Synonym: [Thlaspi campestre L.] Life span: annual Growth form: lacks a caudex Height: stems 1.5-6 dm tall Surface: hirtellous throughout with simple hairs Leaves: alternate; basal leaves 3-12 cm long, 8-15 mm wide, oblanceolate, entire or variously lobed; cauline leaves numerous, reduced upwards, becoming sessile and auriculate, usually denticulate pedicels mostly 4-7 mm long, spreading, slightly flattened, hirtellous Sepals: sepals 1.3-2 mm long, greenish or varously tinged, hirtellous Petals: petals 1.7-2.5 mm long, white, spatulate, ascending Stamens: stamens 6 Fruit: silicles 5-6 mm long, oblong-ovate, glabrous or puberulent, concave, wingless, slightly emarginate Style: style 0.2-0.6 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 16, 32 Habitat: Roadsides and other disturbed sites; widely established in North America; Asia

Virginiacress_(Lepidium_virginicum_L.)

Virginiacress (Lepidium virginicum L.)


Common name: Virginiacress Life span: annual Growth form: lacking a caudex Height: stems 1.5-7 dm tall Surface: pubescent throughout or glabrous above Leaves: basal leaves 1.3-15 cm long, 0.3-3.5 (5) cm wide, coarsely toothed to lobed; cauline leaves reduced upwards, uppermost usually entire; pedicels 2-6 mm long, spreading, terete or nearly so, pubescent or glabrous Sepals: sepals 0.6-1 mm long Petals: petals 0.7-1.5 (3) mm long, white, spatulate, rarely lacking Fruit: silicles 2.5-4 mm long, 2.2-3.5 mm broad, elliptic to orbicular, usually glabrous, plane, notched apically Style: style lacking Chromosome number: n = 16 Habitat: Joshua tree, creosote bush, other warm desert shrub, mixed desert shrub, pinyon-juniper, ponderosa pine, white fir, and spruce-fir communities; widely distributed in North America.

Radish_(Raphanus_L.)

Radish (Raphanus L.)


Surface: pubescent with simple hairs Life span: annual Roots: from tuberous taproots Leaves: leaves alternate and basal, simple, lyrate-pinnatifid, cauline ones petiolate to subsessile, not auriculate Flowers: flowers in ebracteate racemes Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, white, yellow, or pink to lavender Stamens: stamens 6, filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style apical on a tapering sterile beak, the stigma minute, bilobed Fruit: fruit a silique, many times longer than broad, terete, indehiscent, breaking irregularly at maturity into segments; valves several-grooved Seeds: seeds uniseriate

Wild_Radish_(Raphanus_raphanistrum_L.)

Wild Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum L.)


Common name: Wild Radish Growth form: erect or ascending from a slender root Height: 3-7.5 dm Leaves: basal leaves lyrate-pinnatifid, 10-20 cm long; upper leaves alternate; few, small Flowers:12-18 mm broad, yellow or sometimes white Fruit: silique 2.5-4 cm long, constricted between the seeds when dry

Mustard_(Sinapis_L.)

Mustard (Sinapis L.)


Common name: Mustard Life span: annual or biennial Growth form: weedy with simple stems branched above Leaves: simple, lobed or divided Inflorescence: inflorescence racemose; sepals oblong or obovate, petals spatulate, yellow; silique linear, usually with a tapering beak Seeds: seeds globose, wingless

White_Mustard_(Sinapis_alba_L.)

White Mustard (Sinapis alba L.)


Common name: White Mustard Life span: annual Surface: rough-hairy Height: 3-7 dm tall Leaves: obovate in outline, deeply lyrate-pinnatifid, the lobes sinuate-dentate, petiolate Flowers:1.5 cm wide; mature pedicels divergent, 1 cm long Fruit: siliques divergent or ascending, commonly bristly at least when young, 1.5-3.5 cm long, the valves prominently 3-nerved, beak 1-2 cm, falt, often curved Seeds: pale, smooth, 2 mm diameter Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: scattered locations in KS, MO, NE, SD, & ND

Wheeler,_Charlock_(Sinapis_arvensis)

Wheeler, Charlock (Sinapis arvensis)


Common name: Wheeler, Charlock Surface: more or less hispid, especially at the base, to glabrous Life span: annual Height: 2-8 dm tall Leaves: lower leaves on hispid petioles, obovate, lyrate-pinnatifid; middle and upper leaves nearly or quite sessile, oblong to ovate or rhombic, acute, dentate, sparsely pilose Flowers:1.5 cm wide; mature pedicels ascending, 5(7) mm long Fruit: siliques ascending, linear, subterete, the body 1-2 cm long, 1.5-2.5 mm in diameter, smooth or rarely bristly; beak flattened-quadrangular, commonly ´ as long as the body Seeds: 7-13, smooth, 1-1.5 mm in diameter Chromosome number: 2n = 18

Tumbling_mustard_(Sisymbrium_L.)

Tumbling mustard (Sisymbrium L.)


Surface: Glabrous or hirsute Life span: annuals or rarely biennials Roots: taproot Leaves: leaves alternate and basal, variously lobed to entire, the lower ones usually pinnatifid, reduced upwards, petiolate to sessile, not auriculate Flowers: flowers racemose; pedicels spreading to erect, not subtended by bracts Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, yellow Stamens: stamens 6, the filaments lacking glandular processes Style: style almost lacking, the stigma bilobed Fruit: fruit a sessile silique many times longer than broad, linear to tapering, terete, the valves usually 3-nerved Seeds: seeds several to many, uniseriate

London_mustard_(Sisymbrium_irio_L.)

London mustard (Sisymbrium irio L.)


Common name: London mustard Synonym: [Norta irio (L.) Britt.] Life span: annual Height: 2-8 dm tall Growth form: erect Surface: glabrous Leaves: alternate; leaves 1.5-10 (20) cm long, runcinate-pinnatifid, reduced upwardly Sepals: sepals 2-2.5 (3) mm long, greenish or yellowish Petals: petals 3-4 mm long, yellow, oblanceolate, spreading-ascending; pedicels 6-10 mm long, slender, ascending Fruit: siliques (20) 25-45 mm long, 0.8-1 mm wide, ascending Chromosome number: 2n = 14, 21, 28 Habitat: Weed of disturbed sites; adventive from Europe

Hedge_mustard_(Sisymbrium_officinale_(L.)_Scop.)

Hedge mustard (Sisymbrium officinale (L.) Scop.)


Common name: Hedge mustard Synonym: [Erysimum officinale L.] Life span: annual Height: stems 2.5-8 dm tall or more Surface: hispid-hirsute throughout Leaves: alternate; leaves 1.5-20 cm long or more, lyrate-pinnatifid to pinnatifid, not especially dimorphic, the upper ones merely reduced Flowers: pedicels 2-3 mm long, stout, erect, the tip about as thick as the silique Sepals: sepals 1.5-2.2 mm long, green or yellow Petals: petals 3-4 mm long, yellow, fading white, narrowly oblanceolate, ascending; siliques 8-15 mm long, appressed-erect, tapering to a beaklike tip Fruit: valves 3-nerved Chromosome number: 2n = 14 Habitat: Uncommon weedy plant of disturbed sites; widespread in North America; adventive from Europe.

Penny_cress_(Thlaspi_L.)

Penny cress (Thlaspi L.)


Surface: glabrous Life span: annual or perennial Roots: arising from taproots Leaves: leaves cauline or cauline and basal alternate, simple, entire to dentate or lobed; elliptic, lanceolate or oblanceolate Flowers: flowers in ebracteate racemes Sepals: sepals 4, deciduous Petals: petals 4, white, sometimes pinkish or lavender Stamens: stamens 6, (4 long, 2 short) the filaments lacking glandular processes Fruit: fruit a sessile silicle, compressed contrary to septum, often more or less wing-margined Style: style obsolete or slender and conspicuous Stigma: stigma capitate Seeds: seeds 2 to several per locule, uniseriate

Penny-cress_(Thlaspi_arvense_L.)

Penny-cress (Thlaspi arvense L.)


Common name: Penny-cress Life span: annual Height: the stems mostly 1-7 dm tall Leaves: alternate; basal leaves usually deciduous by anthesis; cauline leaves 1-8 cm long, 2-25 mm wide, elliptic to lanceolate or oblanceolate, sinuate-dentate to pinnatifid or subentire, the uppermost sessile and auriculate Flowers: pedicels 5-12 mm long or more, spreading to curved-ascending Sepals: 4 sepals, 1.5-2.5 mm long, green with whitish margins Petals: 4 petals, 3-4.5 mm long, white Fruit: silicles 10-17 mm long, 7-12 mm wide, strongly compressed, wing-margined all around Stamens: 6 (4 long, 2 short) Style: style almost obsolete Chromosome number: n = 7 Habitat: Weedy species of roadsides, meadows, fields, and other disturbed places, almost ubiquitous; widespread in North America; adventive from Europe Note: This species is potentially poisonous to livestock.


Nettle_Family_(URTICACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Nettle Family (URTICACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Nettle Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves opposite or alternate, simple, with or without stinging hairs Flowers: flowers monoecious or dioecious; hypogynous, imperfect, inconspicuous, arranged in spicate cymes or small cymose clusters; staminate flowers with 3-6 sepals and 3-6 stamens; pistillate flowers with 4 or 5 sepals or the perianth lacking Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1-loculed Style: style 1 Stigma: stigma 1 Fruit: fruit an achene Chromosome number: x = 6-14

Nettle_(Urtica_L.)

Nettle (Urtica L.)


Life span: perennial or annual Growth form: herbs Surface: armed with stinging hairs (and otherwise pubescent) Leaves: leaves simple, opposite, toothed, stipulate Flowers: flowers monoecious or dioecious; in axillary spicate and rudimentary pistil Ovary: ovary superior, the stigmas tufted Fruit: fruit a lenticular achene

Stinging_nettle_(Urtica_dioica_L.)

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.)


Common name: Stinging nettle Life span: perennial Roots: rhizomatous Growth form: herbs Height: stems 6-20 dm tall Surface: bearing stinging hairs and otherwise hairy to subglabrous Leaves: opposite; leaves 4-18 cm long, the petioles 1-6 cm long, the blades 3-15 cm long and 1-8 cm wide, linear-lanceolate or lanceolate to ovate, coarsely serrate, acute apically, the base cordate to truncate or acute Stipules: stipules 5-15 cm long Flowers: flowers inconspicuous, the perianth 1-2 mm long, greenish Chromosome number: 2n = 26

*Urtica_urens_L.

Urtica urens L.


Life span: annual Growth form: erect Height: up to 6 dm Surface: stinging bristles Stem: most often branched Leaves: opposite; elliptical/ ovate; all leaves approximately the same shape Petals: actually white, but so small that they appear greenish Habitat: native of Europe, but widespread over much of North America


Niad_Family_(NAJADACEAE_Juss.)

Niad Family (NAJADACEAE Juss.)


Growth form: Small aquatics Life span: annual Leaves: narrow, opposite Flowers: unisexual

*Najas_L.

Najas L.


Growth form: small branching herbs, completely submerged Leaves: crowded, dilated at base Flowers: very small, imperfect, solitary, but often clustered on short branches in the axils; staminate flowers consisting of a single stamen, the pistillate of a single pistil


Parsley_Family_(APIACEAE_Lindl.)

Parsley Family (APIACEAE Lindl.)


Common name: Parsley Family Life span: annual biennial or perennial Growth form: acaulescent or caulescent herbs Roots: from taproots, rhizomes, fibrous or tuberous roots, or caudices Leaves: leaves simple to decompound, petioles typically sheathing basally or the upper leaves reduced to dilated sheaths Inflorescence: inflorescence of compound umbels, the primary umbels with or without a subtending involucre of bracts, the secondary umbels (umbellets) with or without a subtending involucel of bractlets Flowers: flowers mostly regular, perfect or some of them staminate or sterile Sepals: sepals 5 or lacking Petals: petals 5, small, usually inflexed at the tip, white, yellow, or purple Stamens: stamens 5, small, alternate with the petals Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary inferior, bicarpellate, 2-loculed, with 1 ovule per locule, the two styles with or without a conical base (stylopodium) Fruit: fruit a schizocarp of 2 mericarps united by their faces (the commissure) nearly terete, dorsally or laterally compressed; mericarps separating at maturity and apically attached to and pendulous on a fine wirelike entire or bifid to divided carpophore or remaining adherent and then the carpophore usually lacking or poorly developed and usually adnate to the commissural faces, each mericarp usually 5-nerved, 3 of the nerves dorsal and 2 on the lateral margins, the nerves filiform to winged, or obscure or lacking, the internerve areas commonly with 1 or more oil-tubes, the commissural faces often with 2 or more oil-tubes Chromosome number: x = 4-12

Water_Hemlock_(Cicuta_L.)

Water Hemlock (Cicuta L.)


Life span: perennial Growth form: caulescent, violently poisonous herbs, Surface: glabrous Roots: from clusters of fibrous roots, some of these commonly tuberous-thickened; base of stem thickened, with hollow chambers separated by transverse septa; internodes of stems hollow Leaves: leaves 1-3 times pinnate or ternate-pinnate, with well-developed leaflets Inflorescence: umbels several, compound; involucre wanting or of a few inconspicuous narrow bracts; involucel of several narrow bractlets or rarely lacking Petals: petals white or greenish Calyx: calyx teeth evident Stylopodium: depressed or low-conic Carpophore: divided to the base, deciduous Fruit: fruit ovate or orbicular, compressed laterally, the ribs usually prominent and corky.

Water_Hemlock,_Spotted_Cowbane,_Beaver_Poison_(Cicuta_maculata_L.)

Water Hemlock, Spotted Cowbane, Beaver Poison (Cicuta maculata L.)


Common names: Water Hemlock, Spotted Cowbane, Beaver Poison Stem: stem stout, streaked with purple Height: 1.2-2 m high Leaves: alternate; 2-3-pinnate; leaflets lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 3-12 cm long, acuminate; pedicels very unequal Flowers: white Fruit: 3-3.5 mm. long Habitat: very common in swamps and low grounds Toxins: The roots are very poisonous and are responsible for death of livestock, especially in early spring when the ground is soft.

Carrot_(Daucus_L.)

Carrot (Daucus L.)


Life span: annual or biennial Growth form: caulescent herbs Roots: taproots Leaves: pinnately dissected Inflorescence: umbels compound; involucre of pinnatifid bracts or lacking; involucel of toothed or entire bracts or lacking Calyx: calyx teeth evident to obsolete Petals: petals white or those of the central flower of the umbel or umbellet often purple or rarely all the flowers pink or yellow Stylopodium: conic Carpophore: entire or bifid at the apex Fruit: fruit oblong to ovoid, slightly compressed and evidently ribbed dorsally, with 2 ribs on the commissure, beset with stout spreading glochidiate or barbed ribs.

Carrot_(Daucus_carota_L.)

Carrot (Daucus carota L.)


Common name: Carrot Height: Plants 6-10 dm tall Roots: taproot Surface: herbage glabrous or hirsute Leaves: leaves in rosettes and cauline, mostly 1-2 times pinnate and then pinnatifid, with about 4-9 opposite or offset pair of lateral primary leaflets, basal and lower cauline petioles to 15 cm long, basal and lower blades 5-15 cm long or more, the upper ones reduced and sessile on dilated sheaths, the lowest pair of primary leaflets 1/3-1/2 as long as the leaf blade, on petiolules 4-15 mm long, ultimate segments 1-10 mm long, 0.5-2 mm wide, elliptic, narrowly deltoid, or linear, often acute Inflorescence: peduncles mostly 8-30 cm long; umbels 4-10 or more; involucre of pinnatifid bracts 1-5 cm long, the segments linear and narrow; rays about 15-60 or more, (0.5) 1-6 cm long; involucels similar to the involucre but smaller, or the bractlets entire, 2-16 mm long Fruit: fruit 3-4 mm long, bristly hirsute in rows, the hairs or bristles about 2 mm long, minutely glochidiate apically, the intervals often with shorter simple hairs Chromosome number: 2n = 18. Habitat: introduced from Eurasia Note: The wild plants (ssp. carota) differ from the cultivated ones [ssp. sativus (Hoffm.) Arcangeli] primarily in the size and flavor of the root.

*Hydrocotyle_L.

Hydrocotyle L.


Life span: perennial herbs Growth form: herbs; stems creeping or floating, rooting at the nodes Leaves: leaves petiolate, often peltate Inflorescence: sessile, or borne on axillary peduncles involucres small or lacking Petals: petals white, greenish, or yellow Calyx: calyx minute or lacking Stylopodium: conic to depressed Fruit: fruit orbicular to ellipsoid, more or less flattened laterally, the dorsal surfaces rounded or acute, the ribs obsolete or narrow and acute Carpophore: lacking

Marsh_Pennywort_(Hydrocotyle_umbellata_L.)

Marsh Pennywort (Hydrocotyle umbellata L.)


Common name: Marsh Pennywort Leaves: peltate, orbicular, 1-4 cm wide, crenate; petioles 5-15 cm long Inflorescence: umbels simple, 15-50 pedicellate flowers, 1-2 cm broad, peduncle equaling or, more often, exceeding the length of the petioles Chromosome number: n = 24

Parsnip_(Pastinaca_L.)

Parsnip (Pastinaca L.)


Life span: biennial or perennial Growth form: caulescent herbs Roots: large taproots Leaves: leaves pinnately compound, with broad toothed to pinnatifid leaflets Inflorescence: umbels compound; involucre and involucel usually lacking Calyx: calyx teeth obsolete Petals: petals yellow or red Stylopodium: depressed-conic Carpophore: divided to the base Fruit: fruit elliptic to obovate, strongly flattened dorsally, the dorsal ribs filiform, the lateral ones narrowly winged

Parsnip_(Pastinaca_sativa_L.)

Parsnip (Pastinaca sativa L.)


Common name: Parsnip Life span: biennial Growth form: caulescent aromatic herbs Height: 8-15 dm tall Root: taproot Leaves: alternate; leaves pinnate or partly bipinnate in some of the lower leaflets, with 3-6 opposite or offset pair of lateral leaflets; petioles 3-15 mm long or lacking and the blade sessile on a dilated sheath; blades 12-35 cm long or longer, oblong in outline; leaflets sessile and sometimes confluent or the lower ones sometimes on petiolules to 1.7 cm long, the blades 2.5-12 cm long, lanceolate to ovate, coarsely serrate, and often lobed Inflorescence: umbels 6-15 or more, the terminal one sessile or pedunculate but shorter than the 2 immediately lateral ones, the lateral umbels alternate or opposite or on opposite branches supporting 2 or more umbels; involucre lacking or of 1 to few linear entire or occasionally toothed or lobed bracts to 2 (4) cm long; rays 9-25, 0.8-8.5 cm long; involucels lacking or infrequently of 1-2 linear bractlets to 2 mm long; pedicels 4-20 mm long Petals: greenish yellow or reddish Styles: 0.4-1 mm long Fruit: 5-8 mm long, 3-6 mm wide, broadly elliptic to orbicular or obovate, strongly flattened dorsally the dorsal ribs filiform and the lateral ones slightly winged Chromosome number: 2n = 22. Habitat: Ditchbanks, roadsides, fencelines, gardens, fields, margins of ponds and lakes, and moist flood plains at 850 to 2365 m; introduced from Europe, now widely established in North America Note: The cultivated plants, ssp. sativa, differ from the wild plants, ssp. sylvestris (Miller) Rouy & Camus, in having larger roots. Some of the apparently wild plants might be recent escapees from cultivation.


Pickerel-Weed_Family_(PONTEDERIACEAE_Kunth.)

Pickerel-Weed Family (PONTEDERIACEAE Kunth.)


Common name: Pickerel-Weed Family Life span: perennial Growth form: aquatic herb Leaves: petioled Flowers: perfect, subtended by leaf-like spathes Perianth: 6-parted, corolla-like Stamens: 3 or 6 Fruit: capsule

Water-Hyacinth_(Eichhornia_Kunth.)

Water-Hyacinth (Eichhornia Kunth.)


Common name: Water-Hyacinth Growth form: floating or rooting at node on mud Leaves: floating or immersed, obovate, cordate to lanceolate Flowers: spicate, rarely paniculate; perianth funnelform with long or short tube Stamens: stamens 6, unequally inserted, some of them exserted Ovary: ovary sessile, 3-celled, many-ovuled Style: style filiform

*Eichhornia_crassipes_(Mart.)_Solms.

Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms.


Leaves: 1-12 cm wide, ovate to rounded, slightly scabrous above; petioles inflated at base Stem: scape 1-4 dm high, sheathed near middle Flowers: many, showy; perianth ca. 5 cm. Long, 6-lobed, violet, the upper lobe enlarged and with patch of blue having yellow center Chromosome number: n = 16 Habitat: in sloughs and sluggish water

*Heteranthera_R._&_P.

Heteranthera R. & P.


Growth form: aquatic herbs with creeping, ascending or floating stems Leaves: petioled Bracts: spathes 1-several-flowered Flowers: flowers small; perianth-parts linear, nearby or quite equal

*Heteranthera_limosa_(Sw.)_Willd.

Heteranthera limosa (Sw.) Willd.


Growth form: plant submersed with stems elongate, or emersed with stems contracted Leaves: erect or the blades floating; petioles 5-20 cm long; blades lanceolate to mostly ovate, the base subcordate or tuncate but tapering on narrower blades, the tip rounded Inflorescence: inflorescence pedenculate, the sheathing spathe 2-4 cm long, acuminate, enclosing a single flower Flower: 1-3 cm wide, salverform, 1-4 cm long; perianth lobes linear-lanceolate, white or blue with the base of the upper 1-3 yellow Stamens: 3, unequal, 2 with short yellow anthers, the third with an elongate, light blue or yellow anther Ovary: ovary incompletely 3-celled, the 3 parietal placentae intruding; ovules numerous Fruit: fruit a many-seeded cylindrical capsule retained in the spathe Habitat: in shallow water or on mud, erratically abundant from year to year, MN to CO, south to Mex. & MS

Mud-Plantain_(Heteranthera_dubia_(Jacq.)_Mac_M.)

Mud-Plantain (Heteranthera dubia (Jacq.) Mac M.)


Common name: Mud-Plantain Stem: slender, forked, 6-9 dm long Leaves: linear, flat elongated Bracts: spathes 1-flowered Flowers: pale yellow, tube of perianth thread-like, 2.5-3.5 cm long Habitat: in still waters of ponds and streams


Pink_Family_(CARYOPHYLLACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Pink Family (CARYOPHYLLACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Pink Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves opposite, entire, simple, with or without stipules Flowers: flowers usually perfect, regular Sepals: sepals 4 or 5, connate or persistent Petals: petals 4 or 5 or lacking Stamens: stamens 4-10, distinct Anthers: anthers 2-loculed Pistil: pistil 1, the ovary superior, 1-loculed, with free-central placentation, or incompletely 3- to 5-loculed Styles: styles 2-5 (rarely connate into 1) Fruit: fruit a capsule or a utricle Chromosome number: x = 5-19

Corn_cockle_(Agrostemma_L.)

Corn cockle (Agrostemma L.)


Common name: Corn cockle

*Agrostemma_githago_L.

Agrostemma githago L.


Height: 3-9 dm tall Calyx: sepals extend longer than petals; many whitish hairs on the sepals Leaves: opposite; spear-shaped; 5-10 cm long Petals: purple or red, spotted with black Flowering time: July/September Habitat: introduced to North America from Europe; found in grain fields and waste places

Chickweed_(Cerastium_L.)

Chickweed (Cerastium L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs, with prostrate to erect stems Leaves: leaves opposite, ovate to lanceolate, oblong, or linear, lacking stipules Flowers: flowers solitary and terminal or more commonly in terminal, open or congested cymes Sepals: sepals 5, distinct to the base, 1 (or 3-5) -veined Petals: petals 5, white, showy to inconspicuous, the blade notched or bilobed, or sometimes lacking Stamens: stamens commonly 10, inserted at the base of the ovary; styles usually 5, opposite the sepals Ovary: ovary 1-loculed Fruit: capsule opening by 10 teeth

Campion_(Lychnis_L.)

Campion (Lychnis L.)


Growth form: erect herb Inflorescence: cymose or solitary Calyx: 5-toothed Petals: 5, narrowly clawed, generally crowned Stamens: 10 Styles: 5 Fruit: capsule generally 10-valved

White_Campion_(Lychnis_alba_Mill.)

White Campion (Lychnis alba Mill.)


Synonym: Melandrium album Common name: White Campion Life span: biennial Surface: clammy-hairy Stems: loosely branching Height: 3-6 dm high 20 veined Leaves: opposite; ovate-oblong, 2.5-7.5 cm long; leaves towards the plant base have a leaf stalk, while the leaves along the main stem have no leaf stalks; leaves on the main stem are larger at the bottom and become gradually smaller towards the top; along the stem there are 4-10 leaf pairs Flowers: often dioecious, few, 1.8-2.4 cm wide, opening in the evening, fragrant; 25-35 mm long Calyx: calyx-teeth attenuate; sepals 15-30 mm long; has between 10-20 veins Petals: petals white or pinkish; petal blade 8-12 mm long Fruit: capsule ovoid-conical Habitat: waste grounds or roadsides Note: often confused with Silene noctiflora which has perfect flowers and 3 styles

Soapwort_(Saponaria_L.)

Soapwort (Saponaria L.)


Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs, stems erect, leafy Leaves: leaves opposite, palmately 3-veined Inflorescence: flowers numerous, in usually contracted cymes Flowers: perfect Calyx: calyx tubular, obscurely 15- to 25-veined Petals: petals clawed, appendaged at juncture of blade and claw Stamens: stamens 10 Styles: styles 2 Fruit: capsule opening by 4 teeth Seeds: seeds reniform

Bouncing-bet,_soapwort_(Saponaria_officinalis_L.)

Bouncing-bet, soapwort (Saponaria officinalis L.)


Common name: Bouncing-bet, soapwort Life span: perennial Height: mainly 30-80 cm tall Growth form: herbs, forming clumps, robust Surface: glabrous or nearly so Leaves: opposite; leaves 3-12 cm long, 0.8-4 cm wide, lanceolate to elliptic or ovate-lanceolate; leaves towards the top of the plant are smaller and with very short to almost no leaf stalk; each leaf has 3 prominent veins extending from base to leaf tip Flowers: flowers numerous, usually in compact cymes Calyx: calyx 15-25 mm long, the tube subcylindric or tapering toward the apex, the lobes ovate or triangular, acuminate Petals: petals 3-4 cm long, white or pink, showy, the claw usually surpassing the calyx, the lobes spreading, obovate-cuneate, retuse appendages 2, 1-2 mm long Seeds: seeds black, 1.6-1.8 mm long, pitted Chromosome number: 2n = 28 Habitat: Cultivated ornamental, escaping; widely established in North America; introduced from Europe. Double flowered forms occur in cultivation. Toxins: This plant is considered to be poisonous to livestock due to the presence of saponins, the soapy substances in the juice.

*Scleranthus_L.

Scleranthus L.


Life span: annual Growth form: low weed Stems: stiff branching stems Leaves: opposite, subulate Flowers: small Calyx: deeply 5-lobed with a cup-like hardened tube Stamens: 10 or 5 Ovary: ovoid Styles: 2 Fruit: utricle enclosed by the calyx

Knawel_(Scleranthus_annus_L.)

Knawel (Scleranthus annus L.)


Common name: Knawel Life span: annual Growth form: much-branched prostrate or spreading plant Stems: 7-12 cm long Leaves: 0.4-2.4 cm long, connate at the base Flowers: greenish Note: the common name means a ball of string, referring to the appearance of the plant

Catchfly_(Silene_L.)

Catchfly (Silene L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs with prostrate, decumbent, ascending, or erect stems Leaves: leaves opposite, lanceolate to lance-oblong or linear, lacking stipules Flowers: flowers solitary or few to many in open to contracted cymes Sepals: sepals 5, united to near the apex, each 2 (or more) -veined; petals 5, white to pink, red, or purplish, the blade ascending or spreading, entire or several lobed apically, often appendaged at juncture of blade and claw Stamens: stamens 10, adnate to base of petals Styles: styles commonly 3 (or less commonly 4 or 5) Ovary: ovary 1 ( or incompletely 3-5) -loculed, stipitate Fruit: capsule opening by 6 (rarely 8 or 10) teeth

Night-flowering_catchfly_(Silene_noctiflora_L.)

Night-flowering catchfly (Silene noctiflora L.)


Common name: Night-flowering catchfly Life span: annual Stem: growing erect with only one stem, or the stem sometimes branching towards the tope of the plant Flower: perfect or occasionally dioecious Roots: taproot Length: the stems 2-8 dm tall Growth form: erect Leaves: leaves 2-10 cm long, 0.6-2.5 (4) cm broad, lanceolate to elliptic or the lower ones oblanceolate, several-veined, slightly connate basally, acute to attenuate or obtuse apically, hairy above and beneath, ciliate Flowers: flowers erect, solitary or few to several in open or contracted cymes Inflorescence: pedicels 0.3-1 cm long, glandular-hairy Calyx: calyx tubular, 12-25 mm long, greenish or pinkish, or papery between the veins, glandular-hairy, the teeth 4-9 mm long, ciliate; there are 10 green veins extending up the sepals, with white between the veins Petals: petals white to pinkish, yellow below, pink above; 20-35 mm long, the blades bilobed, the appendages 0.5-1.5 mm long; there are Fruit: capsule 3-locular, 1.5-2.5 cm long (including the stipe) Seeds: seeds 0.8-1.2 mm long, brown, roughened Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: Reported from Cache and Weber counties; widely distributed in North America; introduced from Asia

Sand_Spurry_(Spergula_L.)

Sand Spurry (Spergula L.)


Common name: Sand Spurry Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: small branching herbs Leaves: fleshy, linear; scarious stipules Flowers: pink or whitish, axillary or in leafy cymes; sepals 5; petals 5 or fewer, entire Stamens: stamens 2-10 Style: styles 3

Corn_spurry_(Spergula_arvensis)

Corn spurry (Spergula arvensis)


Common name: Corn spurry Habitat: Europe, widely naturalized.

Starwort_(Stellaria_L.)

Starwort (Stellaria L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs with prostrate to decumbent, ascending, or erect stems Leaves: leaves opposite (rarely whorled), linear-lanceolate to ovate, lacking stipules Flowers: flowers solitary in leaf axils, or few to many and borne in axillary or terminal cymes Sepals: sepals (4) 5, distinct, obscurely 1- to 3-veined Petals: petals (4) 5, white, deeply to shallowly bilobed, or sometimes reduced or lacking Stamens: stamens usually 10, inserted at the base of the ovary Styles: styles usually 3 (rarely 4 or 5) Ovary: ovary 1-loculed Fruit: capsule opening by 6 (rarely by 8 or 10) teeth

Common_chickweed_(Stellaria_media_(L.)_Vill.)

Common chickweed (Stellaria media (L.) Vill.)


Common name: Common chickweed. [Alsine media L.] Life span: annual or biennial (over wintering) Growth form: herbs, forming loose mats or clumps; plant stems lie on the ground and then curve upwards at the tips; rooting at the nodes Roots: taproot Height: the stems mostly 1-5 dm long Surface: pubescent with multicellular hairs in longitudinal line Leaves: opposite; leaves 10-50 (60) mm long, 5-25 (30) mm wide, the blades ovate to elliptic or broadly lanceolate, abruptly acuminate, glabrous above and beneath, ciliate, at least the lower ones with distinctive leaf stalks to 2 mm long, the leaf stalks with small hairs Flowers: flowers axillary, or commonly few to several in short, leafy bracted cymes Inflorescence: pedicels 2-60 mm long, hairy like the stems Sepals: sepals 3-6 mm long, 3-veined, scarious-margined, ciliate basally, hairy dorsally Petals: petals white, 2-6 mm long Fruit: capsules 4-8 mm long, straw colored or greenish, opening by 6 valves Seeds: seeds 0.8-1.2 mm long, uniformly warty Chromosome number: 2n = 40, 42, 44 Habitat: Weedy plants of open sites, usually associated with cultural activities; widely established in North America; adventive from Eurasia

Cowcockle_(Vaccaria_Medicus)

Cowcockle (Vaccaria Medicus)


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs with erect or ascending stems Leaves: leaves opposite, lanceolate to oblong, lacking stipules Flowers: flowers few to numerous in open cymes Sepals: sepals 5, united nearly to the apex Calyx: calyx tube 10-veined and sharply angled Petals: petals 5, pinkish, the blade retuse Stamens: stamens 10 Styles: styles 2 (rarely 3) Ovary: ovary 1-loculed Fruit: capsules opening by 4 teeth

Cowcockle_(Vaccaria_pyramidata_Medicus)

Cowcockle (Vaccaria pyramidata Medicus)


Common name: Cowcockle Synonyms: [Saponaria vaccaria L.; S. segetalis Necker; V. segetalis (Necker) Garcke ex Asch.] Life span: annual Roots: taproot Length: the stems 15-80 cm tall Stems: glabrous Leaves: leaves 3-8 cm long, 5-25 mm wide, lanceolate to lance-ovate or oblong, 1- to 3-veined, attenuate to acute apically, connate-clasping and sessile or short-petiolate basally Flowers: flowers few to many in open cymes, erect to spreading Inflorescence: pedicels 5-60 mm long, glabrous Calyx: calyx constricted apically, 11-15 mm long in flower, the veins purplish or green, glabrous, inflated and strongly 5-angled in fruit, the teeth 1-2 mm long Petals: petals pink, the blades 5-8 mm long, flexed backwards, with a tiny notch at the end Seeds: seeds 1.7-2.1 mm long, reddish black Chromosome number: 2n = 20, 24, 30, 60 Habitat: Open habitats and in sagebrush-bunchgrass and mountain brush communities; widespread in the U. S.; introduced from Europe


Plantain_Family_(PLANTAGINACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Plantain Family (PLANTAGINACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Plantain Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs Stems: acaulescent or short-stemmed Leaves: leaves all basal or nearly so Flowers: flowers sympetalous, small, perfect or imperfect, regular, borne in bracteate spikes or in heads Sepals: sepals 4 Petals: corolla scarious, 4-lobed; stamens 4, alternate with the corolla lobes, or only 2 Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, with 1-4 locules, the carpels 2 Style: style 1 Fruit: fruit a circumscissile capsule Chromosome number: x = 4-12+

Wart-Cress_(Coronopus_Trev.)

Wart-Cress (Coronopus Trev.)


Common name: Wart-Cress Aroma: strong-smelling diffuse or prostrate annuals or biennials Surface: pubescent with simple hairs Leaves: pinnately parted Flowers: minute, greenish-white, the capitate clusters elongating in front into short racemes Calyx: sepals oval, spreading Stamens: stamens 2 or 4 Fruit: silicles flattened contrary to the narrow partition, the 2 valves strongly wrinkled or tuberculate, 1-seeded, indehiscent Styles: styles not evident Seeds: seeds with narrow incumbent cotyledons

*Coronopus_didymus_(L.)_Sm.

Coronopus didymus (L.) Sm.


Stems: 1.5-2 dm long, leafy, somewhat hairy Leaves: 1-2 cm long, with narrow divisions Flower: pedicels rough-wrinkled Chromosome number: 2n = 32

Plantain_(Plantago_L.)

Plantain (Plantago L.)


Roots: plants from taproots Leaves: leaves simple, entire or variously lobed Flowers: flowers several to many, inconspicuous, each subtended by a bract Calyx: calyx sometimes irregular Petals: corolla scarious or membranous, persistent Stamens: stamens included or exserted Fruit: fruit included in the calyx or exserted.

English_plantain,_ribgrass,_buckhorn_(Plantago_lanceolata_L.)

English plantain, ribgrass, buckhorn (Plantago lanceolata L.)


Common name: English plantain, ribgrass, buckhorn. Life span: perennial Surface: not woolly at the base but sometimes long white-pilose; scapes strigose Height: 1.5-5 dm tall Leaves: leaves elliptic to narrowly lanceolate or oblanceolate, 5-30 cm long, 0.3-4 cm broad, somewhat expanded but not membranous at the base, 3- to several-veined, entire to obscurely denticulate Inflorescence: inflorescence dense, 1-8 cm long Bracts: bracts ovate, the apex sometimes acuminate and slightly surpassing the flowers, dorsally pubescent to glabrous, ciliate Petals: corolla lobes 2-2.5 mm long, spreading Stamens: stamens 4 Fruit: capsule 2-4 mm long, circumscissile below the middle, the seeds usually 2 Chromosome number: 2n = 12, 24 Habitat: Widely distributed weedy plants in numerous vegetative types; adventive from Eurasia, now widely naturalized in the U. S.

Broadleaf_plantain,_common_plantain_(Plantago_major_L.)

Broadleaf plantain, common plantain (Plantago major L.)


Common name: Broadleaf plantain, common plantain Synonym: [P. major var. pachyphylla Pilger, type from Salt Lake City] Life span: plants perennial Surface: not woolly at the base Height: mostly 1-5 dm tall Leaves: leaves ovate to lanceolate or broadly elliptic, acute to cordate basally, short- to long-petiolate, the blades 3-15 cm long, 2-12 cm broad, expanded and often somewhat membranous basally, 5- to several-veined, denticulate to entire Inflorescence: inflorescence dense to lax (especially below), 3-25 cm long, essentially glabrous Bracts: bracts ovate, shorter than the flowers, glabrous, not ciliate Petals: corolla lobes spreading to reflexed, about 1 mm long Stamens: stamens 4 Fruit: capsules 3-4 mm long, circumscissile below the middle, the seeds several to many Chromosome number: 2n = 12, 24, 36 Habitat: Widespread weedy species of lawns, fields, and other disturbed sites; adventive from Europe, now widely established in North America

Common_Plantain_(Plantago_rugelii_Dcne.)

Common Plantain (Plantago rugelii Dcne.)


Common name: Common Plantain Life span: perennial Leaves: elliptic or ovate, 5-30 dm long, the petioles crimson at the base Flower: scapes 1.5-9 dm high Inflorescence: spikes long and slender, attenuate at the apex Sepals: sepals oblong Fruit: pyxis oblong-cylindric, 4-6 mm long, circumscissile much below the middle, 4-10 seeded Habitat: a bad weed of waysides and dwellings, also in fields and woods


Pokeweed_Family_(PHYTOLACCACEAE_R._Br.)

Pokeweed Family (PHYTOLACCACEAE R. Br.)


Common name: Pokeweed Family Growth form: herbs Leaves: alternate, entire leaves Flowers: regular perfect flowers Calyx: calyx of 5 rounded sepals Petals: none Stamens: stamens 10 Ovary: ovary superior, several-celled Fruit: fruit a berry

*Phytolacca_L.

Phytolacca L.


Life span: perennial Growth form: tall Leaves: exstipulate leaves Inflorescence: raceme Flowers: small flowers Calyx: calyx petal-like Ovary: ovary of 5-15 carpels Fruit: fruit a 5-15-celled juicy berry


Potato_Family_(SOLANACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Potato Family (SOLANACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Potato Family Growth form: herbs, shrubs, or trees Leaves: leaves alternate or fascicled, occasionally opposite, entire to odd-pinnate Flowers: flowers in umbels, cymes, panicles, or solitary, perfect, regular or nearly so, 4- to 6-merous Calyx: calyx usually 5-lobed or -cleft, rotate, campanulate, or tubular, usually persistent Petals: corolla usually 5-lobed, tubular, campanulate, or rotate, the lobes valvate or imbricate and usually plicate in bud Stamens: stamens 5, distinct or slightly united by the anthers; filaments distinct, inserted on the corolla tube alternate with the lobes Anthers: anthers opening by slits or pores Ovary: ovary superior, usually 2-loculed Style: style 1 Stigma: the stigma entire or 2-lobed Fruit: fruit a berry or capsule Chromosome number: x = 7-12

Jimsonweed_(Datura_L.)

Jimsonweed (Datura L.)


Aroma: rank, ill-scented Growth form: herbs, stems stout, mostly erect, branched Leaves: leaves large, ovate to elliptic, petioled Flowers: flowers large, showy, white to lavender, solitary in axils of branches Calyx: calyx prismatic or cylindrical, funnelform, 5-lobed Petals: corolla funnelform to tubular with a spreading, 5- to 10-toothed, plaited limb Stamens: stamens 5, included Ovary: ovary 2-loculed or falsely 4-loculed Fruit: fruit a large, globose or ovoid, normally spiny capsule Seeds: seeds flat Note: poisonous

Jimson_weed,_Jamestown_weed_(Datura_stramonium_L.)

Jimpson weed, Jamestown weed (Datura stramonium L.)


Common name: Jimson weed, Jamestown weed Life span: annual herbs Height: stems 3-10 dm tall Surface: glabrous or nearly so Leaves: alternate; leaves 1-2 dm long, ovate to oblong, repand to coarsely sinuately toothed, nearly lobed, glabrous or nearly so Calyx: calyx 3-6 cm long, the lobes 3-7 mm long, triangular-lanceolate Petals: corolla 5-11 cm long, white to violet Fruit: fruit erect, ovoid, regularly dehiscent into 4 valves Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: Waste places and cultivated land, often in barnyards and corrals; widespread in North America. Note: The plant is much more common in the eastern U.S., where it has been known to poison hogs. It is likewise poisonous to humans, as are the other species as well. They contain a series of alkaloids (hyocyamine, atropine, scopolamine), all physiologically active drugs and deleterious in even very small quantities.

Ground_chery_(Physalis_L.)

Ground cherry (Physalis L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs Stems: leafy Leaves: leaves entire to sinuate-dentate Flowers: flowers solitary in leaf axils, or in clusters of 2-5; pedicels slender Calyx: calyx campanulate to tubular-campanulate, 5-toothed, enlarging and bladdery-inflated in fruit Petals: corolla rotate or open-campanulate, obscurely 5-lobed, yellowish or whitish to purplish Stamens: stamens 5, inserted near the base of the corolla tube Style: style slender Stigma: stigma faintly 2-lobed Fruit: fruit a berry Seeds: seeds few to many

Cutleaf_Ground_Cherry_(Physalis_angulata_L.)

Cutleaf Ground Cherry (Physalis angulata L.)


Common name: Cutleaf Ground Cherry Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Roots: taproot Stems: 1-5 dm tall, erect, branched from base or above, sometimes decumbent, glabrous or with a few short antrorsely appressed hairs especially on younger plants Leaves: variable, principal blades 4-10 cm long, 3.5-8 mm wide, ovate to lance-ovate, or broadly to narrowly elliptic, sometimes oblongish, margins deeply and irregularly toothed, incised-toothed to undulate-toothed or entire, surfaces glabrous or rarelywith sparse appressed hairs; petioles 1-4 cm long Flowers: flowering pedicels 5-15 or 15-40 mm long, 20-30 or 20-45 mm long in fruit Calyx: calyx at anthesis 3-5 mm long, lobes 1-3 mm long; fruiting calyx 20-35 mm long, inflated 10-angled or 10-ribbed Corolla: corolla yellowish, 4-10 mm long, immaculate, or with indistinct spots Anthers: anthers bluish or violet, 2-2.5 mm long , filaments slender, 3-4 mm long Fruit: berry 10-12 mm in diameter Seeds: seeds yellowish, flattened, ovate or broadly elliptical, subsmooth Habitat: alluvial soils along streams and valleys, roadsides, moist open woodlands, fields and waste areas

Nightshade_or_volato_(Solanum_L.)

Nightshade or volato (Solanum L.)


Growth form: herbs or shrubs; sometimes clambering or twining Surface: glabrous to pubescent or tomentose, often glandular; armed or unarmed Leaves: leaves simple and entire to lobed or parted Flowers: flowers mostly in umbels or cymes, white or yellow to blue or purple Calyx: calyx 5-cleft or -toothed, rotate to campanulate Petals: corolla 5-angled or -lobed, plaited in bud Stamens: stamens 5, inserted on the corolla tube; filaments short Anthers: anthers connivent around the style, dehiscent by a terminal pore or short slit Ovary: ovary 2-loculed Stigma: stigma small, capitate or bilobed Fruit: fruit a globose berry with several to many flattened seeds

Carolina_nightshade_(Solanum_carolinense_)

Carolina nightshade (Solanum carolinense L.)


Common name: Carolina nightshade Life span: perennial Roots: from creeping underground rhizomes Growth form: stems erect, branched; coarse herb Height: mainly 3-10 dm tall Surface: spiny and loosely pubescent throughout with 4- to 8-rayed, stellate hairs Leaves: alternate; leaves ovate to ovate-elliptic or lanceolate, to 14 cm long, the blades rounded basally, usually with several large teeth or shallow lobes on each side, more or less spiny along the main veins, the petiole to 3 cm long Flowers: flowers several, racemose Calyx: calyx 5-7 mm long, the lobes lance-acuminate Petals: corolla pale violet to white, 2-3 cm wide Fruit: fruit globose, yellow at maturity, 1-2 cm wide Chromosome number: 2n = 48 Habitat: eastern U. S. and adventive

Black_nightshade_(Solanum_nigrum_L.)

Black nightshade (Solanum nigrum L.)


Common name: Black nightshade Synonym: [S. americanum Miller] Life span: plants annual Stems: stems slender, usually divergently much-branched, Height: mainly 1.5-10 dm tall Surface: glabrous or nearly so Leaves: alternate; leaves petioled, the blades ovate to oval or ovate-lanceolate, entire to sinuate-dentate, pale green, to 10 cm long Inflorescence: umbels with 2-4 flowers, on slender peduncles to 3 cm long Flowers: pedicels reflexed Calyx: calyx of unequal acutish to obtuse spreading lobes 1-1.5 mm long Petals: corolla white or purplish tinged, the lobes 4.5-7 mm long Fruit: berry black, glossy, 5-9 mm wide Habitat: Roadsides, gardens, and other cultivated or open lands; adventive from Europe and now widespread in the U. S. Note: This species is often mistaken for S. sarrachoides (q.v.).

Black_Nightshade_(Solanum_ptycanthum_Dun._ex_DC.)

Black Nightshade (Solanum ptycanthum Dun. ex DC.)


Common name: Black Nightshade Life span: annual Growth form: herbs Roots: taproot Stems: erect or more commonly divergently branching from base and above, (1)3-6(12) dm tall or long, unarmed, glabrous or sparsely strigose, often rather densely strigose in youn branchlets, eglandular Leaves: alternate, highly variable in shape and size; blades usually membranaceous, ovate to oval, ovate-lanceolate, triangular-ovate, lanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate 5-10(17) cm long, margins entire, undulate, or sinuate-dentate, bases cuneate, rounded to subtruncated or subcordate, apex acute, obtuse, or short acuminate, surfaces glabrous to sparsely pubescent especially along veins and near the margins; petioles (0.1)3-7(10) cm long, usually winged at least above Inflorescence: inflorescences axillary, umbellate or rarely corymbiform, usually strigose on all parts; peduncles filiform to rather stout, 1-3 cm long; pedicels often unequal, (1)3-7(10) mm long, soon relaxed Calyx: calyx campanulate, lobes often unequal, 1-1.5 mm long, lanceolate to oblong, acute to obtuse Corolla: corolla white, sometimes with a yellow star, rarely bluish or streaked with purple; petals fused together; (3)4.5-7(9) mm long, lobes 3-6 mm long, often reflexed Anthers: anthers 1.5-2 mm long, pollen 18-22 in diameter Style: style 2.5-3.3 mm long Fruit: mature berries purplish-black, shiny or dull, 5-9 mm in diameter, usually detaching at junction of pedicel and peduncle but sometimes at the recpetacle Habitat: moist open woodlands, prairie ravines, stream banks & valleys, fields, gardens, roadsides, & waste places

Buffalobur_(Solanum_rostratum_Dunal)

Buffalobur (Solanum rostratum Dunal)


Common name: Buffalobur Life span: plants annual Height: stems to 7 dm tall Surface: somewhat hoary or yellowish with copious, wholly stellate pubescence, also abundantly armed with straight prickles Leaves: alternate; 1- to 2-pinnatifid Inflorescence: racemes with ascending pedicels Calyx: calyx nearly hidden by the numerous, spinelike prickles Petals: corolla yellow, 20-25 mm broad, the short lobes broadly ovate Stamens: stamens and style much declining, the lowermost anther much longer and exceeding the others, and with an incurved beak Fruit: berry wholly enclosed by the investing calyx Seeds: seeds coarsely undulate-rugose Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: Occasional weed of cultivated and otherwise disturbed sites, and in adjacent plant communities; indigenous in the central United States, adventive elsewhere.

Hairy_nightshade_(Solanum_sarrachoides_Sendt._ex_Martius)

Hairy nightshade (Solanum sarrachoides Sendt. ex Martius)


Common name: Hairy nightshade Synonym: [S. villosum Miller, S. nigrum var. villosum (Miller) Miller] Life span: annual Growth form: stems much-branched, ascending to decumbent Height: 1-5 dm long Surface: shortly viscid-villous Leaves: alternate; leaves ovate, 2.5-6 cm long, gradually to abruptly narrowed basally, apically acute to obtuse, entire to sinuately toothed, the petioles 1-1.5 cm long Inflorescence: peduncles 5-10 (20) mm long Calyx: calyx 2-2.5 mm long at anthesis, accrescent in fruit Petals: corolla white, 3-5 mm wide, the lanceolate lobes villous outside Fruit: berry 6-7 mm wide, globose, yellow when ripe Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: Weedy plants of fields, roadsides, gardens, and other open sites; adventive from South America; widely established in North America.


Primrose_Family_(PRIMULACEAE_Vent.)

Primrose Family (PRIMULACEAE Vent.)


Common name: Primrose Family Growth form: herbs Leaves: simple Flowers: perfect, regular, gamopetalous Calyx: calyx free from ovary, 4-9-parted Corolla: corolla 4-9-lobed Stamens: stamen of same number as corolla lobes and opposite them Ovary: ovary superior, 1-celled, with central, free placenta

Pimpernel_(Anagallis_L.)

Pimpernel (Anagallis L.)


Common name: Pimpernel Growth form: low spreading annual herb Leaves: opposite or whorled, entire Flowers: solitary, axillary, peduncled Corolla: corolla rotate, with a very short tube, the lobes broad Stamens: stamens 5; filaments bearded Fruit: capsule circumscissile, many-seeded

*Anagallis_arvensis_L.

Anagallis arvensis L.


Life span: annual Stems: decumbent or ascending, 10-20 cm high Leaves: ovate, sessile; peduncles exceeding the leaves Flowers: orange-scarlet, sometimes white; petals obovate, minutely glandular-ciliate Habitat: Introduced from Europe in waste places


Purslane_Family_(PORTULACACEAE_Juss.)

Purslane Family (PORTULACACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Purslane Family Growth form: shrubs and herbs often with smooth, succulent leaves Leaves: simple, alternate, opposite or basal, stipules tufted or scarious Inflorescence: inflorescence axillary or terminal, the flowers solitary, cymose, racemose, or paniculate Flowers: bisexual Sepals: sepals two, bractlike Petals: petals four to five, fused at base or free Stamens: stamens opposite the petals, as many as the petals, fewer, or more, usually free Pistil: pistil one, ovary superior to inferior, styles and stigmas one to nine Fruit: fruit a capsule or sometimes nutlike, seeds one to many

*Calandrinia_Kunth.

Calandrinia Kunth.


*Calandrinia_caulescens

Calandrinia caulescens


*Claytonia_L.

Claytonia L.


Growth form: low succulent herbs Surface: glabrous Life span: annual Roots: fibrous roots or perennial from corms or thickened rootstocks Leaves: basal, petioled, the cauline opposite or alternate Flowers: small, white, pinkish, or yellowish, in loose terinal racemes, lasting more than one day Sepals: sepals 2, ovate, herbaceous, persistent Petals: petals 5 Style: style 3-notched or cleft Seeds: seeds flattened

Miner's_Lettuce_(Claytonia_perfoliata_Donn.)

Miner's Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata Donn.)


Common name: Miner's Lettuce Life span: annual Growth form: branched from the base, erect Height: 1-5 dm high Leaves: basal, long-petioled, the blades usually rhombic-ovate, but varying to spatulate-linear; cauline leaves united, forming an orbicular or somewhat angle disk, 3-5 cm broad Inflorescence: racemes 1-sided, usually interrupted, with the flowers fascicled; petals 3-5 mm long, white Seeds: seeds black, shiny, minutely cellular reticulate, kidney-shaped Habitat: moist shady places

Purslane_(Portulaca_L.)

Purslane (Portulaca L.)


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: succulent herb Leaves: alternate or approximate terete or flat Inflorescence: inflorescence near the end of stem, axillary, flowers solitary or small clusters Sepals: sepals two, fused at base Petals: petals four to six Stamens: stamens four to many fused to base of petals Ovary: ovary half to wholly inferior, syles three- to nine-parted Fruit: fruit a circumscissile capsule, seeds numerous

Purslane_(Portulaca_oleracea_L.)

Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.)


Common name: Purslane Growth form: forming mats, prostrate and radially spreading, somewhat ascending Surface: glabrous; leaf axils without pubescence Roots: fibrous roots Leaves: 1-3 cm long, elliptic to obovoid, or spatulate, flattened Flowers: sessile, crowded, sepals ovate 3-5 mm long, strongly keeled; petals yellow or orange yellow Stamens: stamens six to fifteen Fruit: capsule ovoid, 6-9 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 24 Habitat: disturbed sites, pinelands, sandy soil, cosmopolitan weed


Rose_Family_(ROSACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Rose Family (ROSACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Rose Family Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs, shrubs, or trees Leaves: leaves alternate or basal (and still alternate) or less commonly opposite, simple or pinnately to palmately compound, mostly deciduous, stipulate or rarely estipulate Flowers: flowers perfect or imperfect, regular, complete or incomplete, perigynous to epigynous, borne singly or in racemose, corymbose, umbellate or cymose clusters Sepals: sepals usually 5 (more in some), often bearing bracteoles alternate with the lobes, borne with petals and stamens on margin of a hypanthium Petals: petals usually 5 (lacking or more in some), commonly showy Stamens: stamens 5 to numerous Pistils: pistils 1 to many, of 1 carpel, or of 5 connate or distinct carpels enclosed in the hypanthium Fruit: fruit an achene, follicle, drupe, pome, aggregate, hip, or accessory Chromosome number: x = 7-9, 17+ Note: The rose family is both large and complex. The diversity of fruit type reflects the many morphological differences in structure of the gynoecium. Suggestions by some workers that the group should be segregated into more than one family is not without merit. It is held together by the presence of the hypanthium on which the perianth and stamens are displayed. This is a complex structure, with several possible origins, and might fail ultimately as a diagnostic character.

Cinquefoil,_Five-Finger_(Potentilla_L.)

Cinquefoil, Five-Finger (Potentilla L.)


Common names: Cinquefoil, Five-Finger Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Leaves: compound; serrate or cleft leaflets Flowers: in terminal cymes, yellow or white, with petals, sepals and bractlets 5 each Stamens: stamens usually 20 or more, with filiform filaments Fruit: achene usually numerous

Cinquefoil_(Potentilla_recta_L.)

Cinquefoil (Potentilla recta L.)


Common name: Upright Cinquefoil Growth form: erect, stout Surface: villous-pubescent Height: 3-7 dm high Leaves: alternate; numerous, 5-7-foliolate; leaflets oblanceolate, 3-14 cm long, hirsute on both surfaces Flower: numerous, 1.2-2.5 cm broad, yellow, showy Stamens: stamens 20-30 Pistil: carpels wrinkled Habitat: fields, roadsides, and waste places


Sedge_Family_(CYPERACEAE_Juss.)

Sedge Family (CYPERACEAE Juss.)


Common name: Sedge Family Growth form: grass-like or rush-like herbs, with fibrous roots, mostly solid clums Leaves: leaves with closed sheaths Flowers: perfect or imperfect, arranged in spikelets, one in the axil of each scale, the spikelets solitary or clustered, 1-many-flowered Perianth: hypogynous, composed of bristles or scales, or none Stamens: usually 1-3 Ovary:1-celled Style: style 2-3 cleft Fruit: an achene

nut-Grass,_Flat-Sedge_(Cyperus_L.) <CF 000 100 000><S20>Nnut-Grass, Flat-Sedge (Cyperus L.)

Common names: nut-Grass, Flat-Sedge Growth form: subscapose annual or perennial grass-like herbs Stems: triangular, solid Inflorescence: inflorescence subtended by and exceeded by 1-several leaf-like bracts Spikelets: spikelets in simple or compound umbels or heads Stamens: stamens 1-3

Nut-Grass_(Cyperus_esculentus_L.)

Nut-Grass (Cyperus esculentus L.)


Common name: Nut-Grass Culm: culms mostly solitary, stout, 3-3 dm tall Leaves: 4-8 mm wide, sometimes as long as the culms or a little longer, rough-margined Bracts: bracts much surpassing the inflorescence; umbel 2-8-rayed, sometimes compound Spikelets: spikelets linear, diverging, mostly 2-ranked, arranged in spikes, the rachilla winged Scales: scales yellow to reddish-brown, scarious-margined, the green midribs mucronate Fruit: achenes ovoid Note: the tubers are edible, but the plant becomes a noxious weed in many places

*Cyperus_rotundus_L.

Cyperus rotundus L.


Surface: glaucous Life span: gregarious perennial Stems: tuberous creeping rhizomes present; culms to 5 dm tall Leaves: spreading, basal; blades linear, exceeded by the culms, 3-4 mm wide; sheath loose, purplish Involucre: involucral leaves four to five, usually one as long or longer than the umbel Spikelets: rays two to three, with a few spikelets to 25 mm long, ovate, appressed Fruit: achene 1.5-1.9 mm long, obovate

Spilbrush_(Eleocharis_R._Br.)

Spilbrush (Eleocharis R. Br.)


Life span: annual or perennial sedges Stems: culms simple, triangular, quadrangular or terete Leaves: leaves reduced to sheaths Spikelets: solitary, terminal, erect, several-flowered Scales: concave, spirally imbricated in several ranks Perianth: of 1-12 bristles, sometimes lacking Stamens: 2-3 Style: 2-3-cleft, the bulbous base persistent upon the apex of the achene, forming a terminal tubercle


Sesame_Family_(PEDALIACEAE_R._Br.)

Sesame Family (PEDALIACEAE R. Br.)


Common name: Sesame Family Growth form: herbs Surface: coarse with glandular or eglandular trichomes Leaves: leaves opposite or the upper sometimes alternate, simple, entire to variously lobed Flowers: flowers perfect, racemose or solitary Calyx: calyx lobes usually 5, distinct or mostly united Corolla: corolla irregular, sympetalous, slightly spurred or saccate at the base, the oblique limb with 5 imbricate lobes Stamens: stamens 4, paired, the fifth rudimentary, or stamens 2, with 3 rudimentary ones Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2-loculed Fruit: fruit with a soft exocarp when young, at maturity the hard endocarp splitting apically into 2 lateral, curved beaks Chromosome number: x = 8, 13, 14, 15, 18

Unicorn_plant_(Proboscidea_Schmidel)

Unicorn plant (Proboscidea Schmidel)


Life span: annual Growth form: spreading on the ground; herbs Leaves: leaves opposite or the upper sometimes alternate; varying somewhat in shape from cordate to orbicular Stems: 30-80 cm long Flowers: flowers racemose, terminal, but appearing lateral Bracts: bracts small and deciduous or lacking Calyx: calyx unequally 5-lobed, cleft to near the base, membranous Petals: corolla 5-lobed, slightly bilabiate, the limb oblique Stamens: stamens 4, paired, the fifth a staminodium Ovary: ovary 2-loculed Fruit: fruit a drupaceous capsule with fleshy exocarp and woody, reticulate, dehiscent endocarp, which gradually tapers and splits into 2 long, stout, incurved beaks. Habitat: Delaware to Colorado and California, southward to Mexico

Unicorn-plant_(Proboscidea_louisianica_(Mill.)_Thell.)

Unicorn-plant (Proboscidea louisianica (Mill.) Thell.)


Common name: Unicorn-plant Life span: annual Stems: stout, much-branched, 3-9 dm high Leaves: opposite at least on the lower stem, broadly ovate to orbicular-cordate, 7-30 cm in diameter Calyx: calyx cleft on the lower side Corolla: corolla whitish or yellowish, mottled with purple or yellow within, 4-5 cm long Fruit: 10-15 cm long, splitting into 2 diverging segments


Smilax_Family_(SMILACACEAE_Vent.)

Smilax Family (SMILACACEAE Vent.)


Growth form: herbs or occasionally woody plants Roots: rhizomes, corms, bulbs, or other fleshy structures often present Leaves: alternate or whorled or very rarely opposite, sometimes all basal Flowers: bisexual or rarely unisexual, radially symmetrical or rarely tending to be bilaterally symmetrical, hypogynous or rarely perigynous or epigymous, rarely other than 3-merous; perianth nearly always large and conspicuous, both sepals and petals corolla-like, usually white or conspicuously colored Stamens: stamens rarely of other number than 6 Styles: styles rarely separate Fruit: fruit a capsule or sometimes a berry

*Smilax_L.

Smilax L.


Growth form: chiefly climbing plants with woody or herbaceous stems Surface: often armed with spines or prickles Leaves: leathery, the petioles bearing a pair of coiling appendages (stipules) that serve in climbing as the attaching organs of the plant Flowers: regular but imperfect, borne in umbels, on stout pedicels; perianth-segments 6, greenish Stamens: stamens 6; pistillate flowers with 1-6 abortive stamens Fruit: fruit a berry, and important food for ruffed grouse, aslo eaten by black bears


Soapberry_Family_(SAPINDACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Soapberry Family (SAPINDACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Soapberry Family Growth form: trees or large shrubs Leaves: alternate, pinnately or bipinnately compound Inflorescence: panicle Flowers: perfect or imperfect, irregular; disk borne between the petals and the stamens Sepals: 4 or 5, distinct or connate at the base Petals: 4-5, inserted below an annular fleshy disk, with 2 upturned appendages at the base of the blade Stamens: 8 or fewer, the filaments distinct Pistil:1, the ovary superior, 3-loculed, with 2 ovules per locule, the placentation axile Style: 1 Fruit: fruit a loculicidal capsule Chromosome number: x = 10-16

Balloon_Vine_(Cardiospermum_L.)

Balloon Vine (Cardiospermum L.)


Common name: Balloon Vine Growth form: herbaceous or semiwoody vines with slender stems and bearing axillary tendrils Leaves: biternate or twice compound, sometimes trifoliolate leaflets coarsely serrate or crenate often with pellucid dots Flowers: unisexual or occasionally bisexual in axillary racemes or corymbs, white, bilaterally symmetrical; sepals four or five, petals four, stamens eight, disk with two glands Pistil: ovary three-locular, stigmas three Fruit: fruit a large, inflated, bladdery capsule

Balloon_Vine_(Cardiospermum_halicacabum_L.)

Balloon Vine (Cardiospermum halicacabum L.)


Common name: Balloon Vine Life span: annual Growth form: much-branched vine with axillary tendrils Leaves: alternate, usually ternate or twice ternate; leaflets ovate-lanceolate to rhombic-lanceolate or narrowly lanceolate, acuminate at apex, decurrent on petiolules, toothed or incisely lobed, to 8 cm long Flowers: irregular, 4 mm long; sepals 4, 2 large and 2 small; petals 4, whitish, often somewhat unequal, each with a petaloid appendage at base; disk extra-staminal Stamens: stamens 8 Ovary: ovary 3-celled, 1 ovule per cell Fruit: fruit a bladdery-inflated, 3-celled and 3-lobed cpsule, 3-4.5 cm in diameter Seeds: seeds black, about 5mm in diameter Habitat: moist thickest, riverbanks, waste places


Spiderwort_Family_(COMMELINACEAE_R._Br.)

Spiderwort Family (COMMELINACEAE R. Br.)


Common name: Spiderwort Family Life span: herbacious perennials Growth form: stems erect, mostly glabrous, stout Leaves: typically cauline, alternate, narrow, distinctly parallel-veined Flowers: perfect, showy, 3-merous, diferentiated into spepals and petals Sepals: distinct, imbricate, green Petals: free, alternate with the sepals and colored Stamens: 6, in 2 series, the filaments flattened basally Anthers: basifixed Ovary: superior, sessile, 3-loculed, with 1 or 2 ovules per locule Style: 1 Fruit: loculicidal capsule, enclosed by fleshy sepals Seeds: 1-6 Chromosome number: x = 4-19

Dayflower_(Commelina_L.)

Dayflower (Commelina L.)


Growth form: branching herbs, erect, ascending, or procumbent Flowers: regular or irregualr Sepals: sepals unequal Stamens: stamens unequal, the 3 sterile smaller

Dayflower_(Commelina_communis_L.)

Dayflower (Commelina communis L.)


Common name: Dayflower Growth form: erect or repent annual Stems: 1.5-10 dm long, glabrous to somewhat pubescent at nodes, often rooting at nodes; internodes to 13 cm long Roots: fibrous Leaves: lance-ovate, 1.6-9 cm long, 1.1-3.2 cm wide, acute to acuminate, glaucous beneath, scabrous white hairy above; sheaths 4-20 mm long, throat of sheath more or less hairy Bract: spathes solitary ro congested, 12-29 mm long, 6-14 mm wide; margins open across top and down side to spathe stalk Flower: corolla blue with 1 smaller lanceolate white petal Stamens: sterile anthers 3; fertile anthers 3; fertile anther locule (1.2)1.4-2.0 mm long Fruit: capsule 6-7 mm long, about ´ as wide, usually 2-celled with 1 or 2 seeds per cell, third cell abortive Seeds: seeds foveolate to roughened, 2.5-3.0 mm long Habitat: riverbanks and moist places


Spurge_Family_(EUPHORBIACEAE_A._L._Juss.)

Spurge Family (EUPHORBIACEAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: Spurge Family Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs or woody plants, the juice milky or watery Leaves: leaves simple, alternate or opposite (or whorled) Flowers: flowers imperfect Sepals: sepals 4-6 or lacking (a calyxlike involucre, a cyathium, present in Euphorbia) Petals: petals 4-6, distinct, or commonly lacking Stamens: stamens 1 to many Pistil: pistil 1, Ovary: the ovary superior, 3-loculed and 3-seeded or 1-loculed and 1-seeded in Eremocarpus; ovules 1 or 2 per locule Styles: styles 3 or 3-lobed Fruit: fruit a 2- or 3-valved capsule Chromosome number: x = 6-14+.

*Croton_L.

Croton L.


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Surface: appressed-stellate Leaves: leaves alternate, petioled, simple, estipulate; lanceolate Flowers: flowers imperfect, the inflorescence racemose; flowers have no petals, but may appear yellow due to their 10-15 yellow stamens Calyx: calyx mostly 5-lobed Petals: petals lacking; nectary disk present, the lobes or glands alternate with the petals Receptacle: receptacle usually hairy Stamens: stamen mostly 5 or more Flowers: pistillate flowers typically below the staminate Ovary: ovary typically 3-loculed Styles: styles as many as the locules Fruit: capsule usually 3-lobed, 3- (or 1) -seeded Seeds: seeds carunculate, smooth, shiny

Turkey-mullein_(Eremocarpus_Benth.)

Turkey-mullein (Eremocarpus Benth.)


Growth form: Low, gray, scented Life span: annual herbs Roots: from taproots, pubescent with elongate stellate and stinging hairs Leaves: leaves alternate, entire, 3-veined Flowers: monoecious; staminate flowers in terminal cymes, with 5- or 6-lobed calyx, lacking petals, with 6 or 7 stamens, the receptacle hairy; pistillate flowers, 1-3 in stem axils, lacking a perianth Ovary: ovary with 4 or 5 small glands at the base, 1-loculed, the style not divided Fruit: capsule 2-valved, 1-seeded

Turkey-mullein_(Eremocarpus_setigerus_(Hook.)_Benth.)

Turkey-mullein (Eremocarpus setigerus (Hook.) Benth.)


Common name: Turkey-mullein Synonym: [Croton setigerus Hook.] Growth form: dichotomously branched from the base, forming cushionlike clumps 3-20 cm tall Leaves: alternate; leaves 1.8-6 cm long, ovate to suborbicular; petioles about as long as the blades Flowers: inconspicuous; staminate flowers pedicellate, the calyx about 2 mm long, surpassed by the stamens Pistil: pistil pubescent Fruit: capsules about 3-5 mm long; seeds ellipsoid, smooth or somewhat ridged, not carunculate Habitat: Creosote bush community at about 824 m in Washington County; Washington and Idaho, south to California and Arizona

Spurge_(Euphorbia_L.)

Spurge (Euphorbia L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves simple, alternate, opposite, or whorled Flowers: flowers monoecious, borne in involucres called cyathia, these simulating a single flower and often with petaloid appendages on marginal glands Flowers: pistillate flowers solitary in center of the cyathium, pedicellate, lacking a calyx and corolla Ovary: the ovary 3-loculed Styles: styles 3, usually bifid Flowers: staminate flowers without a calyx or corolla, in 5 fascicles, 1 to several per fascicle, the fascicles opposite the lobes of the involucre, each pedicel of 1 stamen often with a minute bract at base Fruit: capsules 3-loculed, 3-seeded, usually nodding


St._Johnswort_Family_(GUTTIFERAE_A._L._Juss.)

St. Johnswort Family (GUTTIFERAE A. L. Juss.)


Common name: St. Johnswort Family Growth form: herbs Leaves: leaves opposite, simple, entire, glandular-punctate Stipules: stipules lacking Flowers: flowers perfect, regular, cymose Sepals: sepals 5 (4) Petals: petals distinct, 5 (4), yellow Stamens: stamens numerous, often in 3-5 clusters, with the filaments united below Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1- to 5-loculed Styles: styles 3-5, distinct or united Fruit: fruit a capsule with 3-5 parietal or axile placentae Chromosome number: x = 7, 8, 9, 10 Synonym: [Clusiaceae Lindl.; Hypericaceae A. L. Juss.]

St._Johnswort_(Hypericum_L.)

St. Johnswort (Hypericum L.)


Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs Surface: glabrous Leaves: leaves opposite, simple, lanceolate or elliptical to ovate; without leaf stalks; with smooth edges, dotted with oil glands Flowers: flowers perfect; regular; yellow; 5 petals, often dotted with oil glands Ovary: ovary 3-loculed or with 3 placentae Stamens: each flower has about 3 bundles of stamens; each bundle has many stamens (too many to count) Fruit: dehiscent capsule, between 5-10 mm long Seeds: many-seeded Germination: spring Flowering time: summer or autumn Habitat: can grow in nutrient-poor soil


Sunflower_Family_(ASTERACEAE_Dumort.)

Sunflower Family (ASTERACEAE Dumort.)


Common name: Sunflower Family Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs, or shrubs Leaves: leaves alternate, opposite, or whorled, simple, pinnatifid, or compound Inflorescence: inflorescence of involucrate heads, these solitary or several in corymbose, racemose, paniculate, or cymose clusters Flowers: flowers few to numerous on a common receptacle, surrounded by green bracts forming a cup-shaped, cylindrical, or urn-shaped involucre enclosing the flowers in bud Petals: heads entirely of tubular (disk) corollas, entirely of ligulate (ray) corollas, or with tubular corollas forming a central disk and an outer radiating row of ligulate corollas Receptacle: receptacle flat, convex, conic, or cylindric, naked or bearing chaffy bracts, scales, or hairs Calyx: calyx lacking, or crowning the summit of the ovary and modified as a pappus of capillary bristles, scales, or awns Stamens: stamens alternate with corolla lobes; filaments free (rarely connate) Anthers: the anthers united and forming a tube (rarely separate) Ovary: ovary inferior, of 2 carpels, 1-loculed and with a single ovule Styles: styles 1, 2-cleft, exserted through the anther tube Fruit: fruit an achene Chromosome number: x = 2-19+ [Asteraceae Dumort.].

Yarrow_(Achillea_L.)

Yarrow (Achillea L.)


Life span: perennial Stems: rhizomatous Growth form: aromatic herbs, with watery juice; stems erect or ascending Leaves: leaves alternate, 1- to 3-pinnately dissected Inflorescence: heads several to many, borne in compact to open corymbose cymes Involucre: involucral bracts imbricate in several series, chaffy, the margins scarious and hyaline Receptacle: receptacle chaffy Flowers: ray flowers present, usually 3-12, pistillate, fertile, yellow, white, pink, or pink purple; disk flowers mostly 10 or more, perfect, fertile Pappus: pappus none Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes compressed, callus-margined, glabrous, beakless

Milfoil_yarrow_(Achillea_millefolium_L.)

Milfoil yarrow (Achillea millefolium L.)


Common name: Milfoil yarrow Growth form: herbs; stems ascending to erect Stems: rhizomes horizontal; villous-tomentose, simple or branched above Height: 0.5-10 dm tall Leaves: alternate; leaves 2-26 cm long, reduced upwards, pinnately once to thrice dissected, the segments very slender Inflorescence: heads numerous, borne in hemispheric or flat-topped, corymbose cymes Involucre: involucres 4-6 mm high, the bracts dark to pale margined, villous to glabrate Flowers: rays usually about 5, 2-3.5 mm long, white to pink or pink purple; disk flowers 10-20 Fruit: achenes 1-2 mm long Habitat: sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, cottonwood, juniper, rabbitbrush, ponderosa pine, mountain brush, aspen, Douglas fir, spruce-fir, and alpine tundra communities; widely distributed in North America; circumboreal

*Ageratum_L.

Ageratum L.


Life span: annual or perennial Growth form: herbs with erect stems Leaves: opposite, dentate Inflorescence: inflorescence croymbose, heads apprearing blue, white, or pink Flowers: corolla lobes deltoid Pappus: pappus of obtuse or acute scales or cuplike

Ragweed_(Ambrosia_L.)

Ragweed (Ambrosia L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs or shrubs Leaves: leaves alternate or opposite, pinnately or palmately lobed, toothed, or dissected Inflorescence: heads unisexual, 3-6 mm wide, discoid; staminate heads in slender spicate, bractless racemes; pistillate heads borne below the staminate ones, mostly axillary Involucre: involucre 5- to 12-lobed; involucre of pistillate heads closed, nutlike, armed with prickles arranged in one or more series Receptacle: receptacle flat, bearing flattened filiform-setose bracts Stamens: staminal filaments monadelphous, the anthers scarcely united Pistil: pistil naked, the corolla lacking Pappus: pappus lacking

Common_ragweed_(Ambrosia_artemisiifolia_L.)

Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.)


Common name: Common ragweed Synonym: [A. elatior L.] Life span: annual Height: mostly 3-9 dm tall Growth form: branching from above the middle Surface: pubescence of lax multicellular hairs, the bases not pustular Leaves: leaves alternate, or the lower usually opposite, petiolate, the blades 2.5-8.5 cm long, 1.9-7.5 cm wide, 1- to 2-pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads numerous in terminal or axillary racemes, the staminate above, pistillate below, clustered or solitary, with 1 series of tuberculate spines; flowers are inconspicuous, from 3-7 mm across, and do not have ray flowers. The cup-like structure below the petals appears green rather than grayish Chromosome number: 2n = 36 Habitat: Moist disturbed sites; widespread in North America.

Giant_ragweed_(Ambrosia_trifida_L.)

Giant ragweed (Ambrosia trifida L.)


Common name: Giant ragweed Life span: annual Growth form: robust herbs Height: 10-15 dm tall or more Surface: pubescence spreading-hirsute to hispid, at least above Leaves: leaves opposite, petiolate, the blades palmately 3- to 5-lobed, or unlobed, elliptical/oval leafshape; mainly 5-20 cm long, 4-15 cm wide, scabrous on both surfaces, serrate Involucre: staminate involucres 3-nerved; pistillate involucres 5-10 mm long, bearing short spines at the tip Petals: white Chromosome number: n = 12 Habitat: weedy plants of disturbed sites; widely distributed in North America

Chamomile_(Anthemis_L.)

Chamomile (Anthemis L.)


Life span: annual or short-lived perennial Growth form: aromatic herbs; stems erect, commonly branched Roots: from taproots, the juice watery Leaves: leaves alternate, 1-3 pinnately dissected Inflorescence: heads solitary on the uppermost branches Involucre: involucral bracts imbricated in several series, chaffy, the margins scarious or hyaline Receptacle: receptacle hemispheric, chaffy at least near the middle Flowers: ray flowers present, white or yellow, usually 10 or more, sterile; disk flowers numerous, perfect, fertile Pappus: pappus none or a short crown Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes subterete or compressed, not callous-margined, glabrous, beakless

Field_Chamomile_(Anthemis_arvensis_L.)

Field Chamomile (Anthemis arvensis L.)


Common name: Field Chamomile Life span: pubescent annual or biennial Height: about 3 dm. high Leaves: alternate; 2.5-7.5 cm. long, less finely parted Inflorescence: heads 2.5-4 cm. broad Flowers: rays 10-18; white Fruit: achene smooth on the sides, obtusely 4 angled Pappus: pappus a mere border

Burdock_(Arctium_L.)

Burdock (Arctium L.)


Life span: biennial Growth form: coarse herbs with watery juice Roots: from a taproot Leaves: leaves rhubarb-like, basal and alternate, entire or toothed Inflorescence: heads few to numerous in axillary or terminal corymbose or racemose inflorescences Flowers: flowers all tubular, perfect Petals: the corollas pink to purplish Involucre: involucres urn-shaped, the bracts imbricate in many series, the tips slender and inwardly hooked Receptacle: receptacle flat, densely bristly Fruit: achenes slightly compressed, more or less 3-angled, many-nerved, truncate apically Pappus: pappus of numerous, scaly, deciduous bristles.

Burdock_(Arctium_minus_(Hill)_Bernh._Burdock.)

Burdock (Arctium minus (Hill) Bernh. Burdock.)


Growth form: robust coarse plants Height: 5-15 (18) dm tall Leaves: basal leaves long-petiolate (resembling in form those of rhubarb), the blades commonly 1-3.5 (4) dm long, 1-3 dm wide, cordate-ovate, obtuse, thinly tomentose to glabrous beneath, glabrous above or nearly so Inflorescence: inflorescence racemosely disposed, the peduncles short or lacking; heads 1-2.5 cm thick (rarely more), the bracts glabrous or glandular to definitely arachnoid Chromosome number: 2n = 32, 36 Habitat: Introduced Old World weed; widespread in North America; Eurasia Note: This is a vigorous, pestiferous weed of mesic rangelands, ditch banks, and other sites. It results in economic loss due to the burs that accumulate in hair of animals, especially wool of sheep and manes and tails of horses. The burs also attach to clothing, and break apart when one attempts to remove them.

*Artemisia_L.

Artemisia L.


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Growth form: herbs, subshrubs, or shrubs; stems decumbent to ascending or erect, simple or branched Roots: from taproots, caudices, or rhizomes, the juice watery Leaves: leaves alternate or basal, entire or toothed, lobed, or divided Inflorescence: heads several to numerous, borne in spicate, racemose, or paniculate clusters Involucre: involucral bracts imbricate in several series, dry, at least the inner with scarious margins Receptacle: receptacle naked or beset with long hairs, often glandular Flowers: corollas of disk flowers only (rarely with minute bilabiate ray flowers in A. bigelovii), perfect, or sometimes the central ones sterile, the marginal merely pistillate; marginal corollas tubular (or bilabiate), the central ones tubular-funnelform Pappus: pappus lacking, or a short crown Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes subterete or angular, glabrous

Mugwort_(Artemisia_vulgaris_L.)

Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris L.)


Common name: Mugwort Life span: perennial Height: 0.5-2 meters tall Leaves: alternate; green above, densely white-tomentose beneath, simple to variously dissected Inflorescence: heads crowded in elongated panicles; flowers inconspicuous; there are no ray flowers; the flowers have a grayish appearance due to the grayish cup that is just below the petals. Involucre: involucre gray-tomentulose

*Aster_L.

Aster L.


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Roots: from rhizomes (suffrutescent in A. spinosus), with watery juice Growth form: stems decumbent to ascending or erect, simple or branched Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire or toothed Inflorescence: heads solitary or few to several in corymbose clusters Bracts: involucral bracts strongly imbricate to subequal (or the outer surpassing the inner), herbaceous throughout, or with scarious margins near the base Receptacle: receptacle flat or merely convex, naked Flowers: rays blue, purple, pink, or white, few to numerous, pistillate; disk flowers numerous, perfect, fertile, yellow or tinged reddish or purplish Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Style: style branches flattened, oblong to lanceolate, mostly more than 0.5 mm long Fruit: achenes mostly several-nerved.

White_Aster(Aster_ericoides_L.)

White Aster (Aster ericoides L.)


Common name: White Aster Life span: colonial perennial Height: 5-10 dm tall Stems: arising from an extensive system of rhizomes and stolons Surface: herbage evenly pubescent, or glabrate below Leaves: alternate; basal and cauline leaves mostly deciduous before flowering time; persistent leaves mostly near the inflorescence and reduced to subulate or linear, sessile bracts, somewhat grading into the involucral bracts on the peduncles Inflorescence: inflorescence of numerous small heads, mostly secund on long, recurving branches Involucre: involucre 2.5-4.5 mm tall, cylindrical to narrowly campanulate; involucral bracts strongly imbricated, bristly tipped Petals: ray florets 10-18, ligule white or rarely pinkish, less that 6 mm long; disk florets rarely more that 14, corolla yellowish to purple Fruit: achenes purplish-brown, 1-2+ mm long, appressed-puberulent; pappus of white or whitish capillary bristles, equaling the disk corolla Chromosome number: n = 5

*Bellis_L.

Bellis L.


Growth form: scapose Life span: perennial herbs Roots: with fibrous roots and short stolons, the juice watery Stems: leafless simple Leaves: leaves all basal, simple, petiolate, toothed to entire Inflorescence: heads solitary Bracts: involucral bracts in 2 subequal series, herbaceous Receptacle: receptacle conic to hemispheric, naked Flowers: rays white, pink, or purple, numerous, pistillate; disk flowers numerous, perfect, yellow; Pappus: pappus lacking Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes flattened, usually 2-nerved, pubescent

European_daisy_(Bellis_perennis_L.)

European daisy (Bellis perennis L.)


Common name: European daisy Height: plants 0.2-2 dm tall Leaves: leaves all basal, with short to long petioles, the blades 0.7-3 (4) cm long, 5-25 mm wide, obovate to oval or orbicular, dentate to entire, obtuse to rounded or emarginate apically, pubescent on both sides with coarse spreading hairs Scape: scapes pubescent with ascending hairs Inflorescence: heads solitary Involucre: involucres 4-7 mm high, 9-15 mm wide, the bracts ovate to broadly lanceolate, rounded to obtuse apically, sparsely hairy dorsally, often suffused with purple, mostly 8-10 mm long, 1.5-2.5 mm wide Pappus: pappus lacking Fruit: achenes flattened Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: adventive from Europe

*Bidens_L.

Bidens L.


Life span: annual herbs Roots: with fibrous roots, or rooting along the lower stem, the juice watery Growth form: stems decumbent to erect, commonly branched Leaves: leaves opposite, spear-shaped, simple or pinnately compound Inflorescence: heads few to several in cymose inflorescences Bracts: involucral bracts in 2 series, the outer herbaceous, the inner somewhat petaloid and striate Receptacle: receptacle flat or slightly convex, chaffy throughout, the chaff similar to the inner involucral bracts Flowers: ray flowers present, yellow, neutral or pistillate, or lacking; disk flowers numerous, perfect, fertile, yellow Pappus: pappus of (1) 2-4 awns or teeth, these retrorsely barbed, persistent Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes flattened, pubescent, usually 2- to 4-awned

Spanish_Needles_(Bidens_bipinnata_L.)

Spanish Needles (Bidens bipinnata L.)


Common name: Spanish Needles Life span: annual herb Roots: fibrous roots Growth form: erect, commonly glabrous Height: 3-17 dm. tall Leaves: petiolate, leaf stalks 2-5 cm long, normally 2-3-pinnate, membranaceous Inflorescence: heads small, 4-6 mm. broad, obscurely radiate involucre pubescent at base Involucre: outer phyllaries 7-10, linear, 3-5 mm long; inner ones linear-lanceolate, longer than the outer ones Flowers: ligulate florets yellowish-white Fruit: achenes linear, tetragonal, often black, 3- or 4-toothed, the teeth commonly 2-4 mm long Flowering time: summer or autumn Habitat: Found in most of the eastern U. S.; Mexico and much of South America; widespread in the Old World.

Starthistle_(Centaurea_L.)

Centaurea L.


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Roots: with taproots or rhizomes, the juice watery Growth form: stems erect or ascending Leaves: leaves alternate, entire to pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads solitary, or few to numerous, discoid Bracts: involucral bracts imbricate in several series, spine-tipped or some of them enlarged and with scarious or hyaline erose to lacerate or pectinate appendages Receptacle; receptacle bristly Flowers: flowers all tubular, perfect, or the marginal ones sterile and falsely subradiate, purple, blue, yellow, pink, or white Pappus: pappus of bristles, scales, or none Style: style branches more or less connate, with a thickened often hairy ring at the base Fruit: achenes obliquely or laterally attached to receptacle Note: This is a very large genus, mainly of the Mediterranean region of the Old World, but with some indigenous to North America, Australia, and South America. All in America are introduced, and the potential for other introductions in this remarkable genus is great. In Flora Europaea, American species are treated within three genera: Amberboa (Pers.) Less. (C. moschata L.), Acroptilon Cassini (C. repens L.) and Centaurea for the others.

Yellow_starthistle_(Centaurea_solstitialis_L.)

Yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis L.)


Common name: Yellow starthistle Life span: annual Height: 2 to 3 feet tall Stems: rigid branching, winged stems covered with a cottony pubescence Leaves: alternate; basal deeply lobed, upper sharply pointed Flowers: heads are yellow, located singly on ends of branches, and armed with sharp straw- colored thorns up to 3/4 inch long Fruits: from ray flowers are dark-colored without bristles, from disk flowers are lighter and have a tuft of white bristles Habitat: usually introduced on roadsides and waste areas Note: "Chewing disease" results when horses are forced to eat the yellow starthistle. Centaurea melitensis L. (Malta starthistle) is similar to the yellow starthistle except that it has smaller seed heads having smaller spines which are branched at the base.

*Chrysanthemum_L.

Chrysanthemum L.


Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from a rhizome or a caudex, with watery juice Growth form: stems erect or nearly so Leaves: leaves alternate, serrate to pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads solitary or few to numerous in open corymbose clusters Involucre: involucral bracts imbricate, in 2-4 series, greenish or straw colored, the margins brownish scarious Receptacle: receptacle naked Flowers: ray flowers white, numerous, pistillate, fertile, or lacking; disk flowers numerous, perfect, fertile, yellow Pappus: pappus lacking or a short crown Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes several-nerved, beakless, glabrous Note: Cultivars of one or more species (probably several) are grown as "chrysanthemums."

Oxeye-daisy_(Chrysanthemum_leucanthemum_L.)

Oxeye-daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum L.)


Common name: Oxeye-daisy Synonym: [Leucanthemum vulgare Lam.] Life span: perennial Height: commonly 2-8 (10) dm tall Stems: stems glabrous or nearly so, mainly simple; rhizomatous or subrhizomatous herbs Leaves: alternate; leaves petiolate below, becoming smaller and sessile above, the blades 0.8-5 cm long, oblanceolate to obovate or linear, serrate, crenate, or pinnately lobed, glabrous or villosulose Inflorescence: heads solitary; involucres 7-10 mm high, 15-23 mm wide, the bracts lance-ovate to oblong-linear, with brown margins, hyaline apically Flowers: rays mainly 15-30, white, 10-22 mm long Pappus: pappus none Chromosome number: n = 9, 18 Habitat: Roadsides, fields, and other disturbed sites; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia

Chicory_(Cichorium_L.)

Chicory (Cichorium L.)


Life span: perennial herbs, with milky juice Roots: from taproots Leaves: leaves alternate, toothed to pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads sessile or subsessile, numerous, borne in clusters at nodes of a spicate, simple, or branched inflorescence Involucre: involucral bracts biseriate, the outer shorter Petals: corollas all raylike, perfect Pappus: pappus of 2 or 3 series of scales, sometimes minute Fruit: achenes angular or somewhat compressed, glabrous

Chicory_(Cichorium_intybus_L.)

Chicory (Cichorium intybus L.)


Common name: Chicory Height: plants 3-10 dm tall or more Surface: hirsute or glabrous Leaves: alternate; lanceolate, lower leaves petiolate, the blades 6-20 cm long, 1-5 (7) cm wide, sinuate-dentate to runcinate-pinnatifid, becoming smaller and sessile upwards, some finally subentire Inflorescence: heads large and showy, 1-3 per node of inflorescence Flowers: flowers pure blue, rarely white Involucre: involucre 9-15 mm high, the outer bracts chartaceous at base, herbaceous apically Fruit: achenes 2-3 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 16, 18, 20 Habitat: Roadsides and disturbed sites; widespread in North America; native of Eurasia

Thistle_(Cirsium_Miller)

Cirsium Miller


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial Stems: caulescent or acaulescent, spiny herbs Roots: from taproots, with caudices or rhizomes in some, the juice watery Leaves: leaves basal and cauline, alternate Inflorescence: heads solitary to several Involucre: Bracts: involucral bracts in several series, subequal to imbricate, some or most of them spine-tipped Receptacle: receptacle densely bristly Flowers: corollas all discoid, pink, purple, red, or creamy white, perfect or imperfect Pappus: pappus of plumose bristles (or those of the outermost flowers merely barbellate) Style: style with a thickened minutely hairy ring below the nearly connate lobes Fruit: achenes glabrous, flattened or 4-angled, 4- to many-nerved. Note: This is a particularly complex genus taxonomically, with both introduced and indigenous species in America. The indigenous members are especially difficult, due in part to hybridization, mainly within species groups.

Creeping_or_Canada_thistle_(Cirsium_arvense_(L.)_Scop.)

Creeping or Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.)


Common name: Creeping or Canada thistle. Synonym: [Serratula arvensis L.] Life span: perennial Roots: rhizomatous herbs Height: the stems mostly 5-10 dm tall Surface: glabrous or sparingly tomentose Leaves: alternate; leaves 3-15 cm long, 1-6 cm broad, deeply pinnatifid or lobed to merely toothed, glabrous to tomentose above and beneath Inflorescence: heads several to many, mainly unisexual Involucre: involucres 10-20 (25) mm high, 10-25 mm wide, the bracts lance-ovate, at least the outer ones and often all of them spine-tipped, tomentose to glabrous Petals: corollas pink purple to white Pappus: pappus of pistillate heads longer than the corollas, that of staminate heads shorter than the corollas Fruit: achenes 3-5 mm long Chromosome number: n = 17, 18 Habitat: Roadsides, fields, and other disturbed sites, but also invading native plant communities (common in the aspen zone); widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia. Its rhizomes make it very difficult to eradicate.

Bull_thistle_(Cirsium_vulgare_(Savi)_Ten.)

Bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten.)


Common name: Bull thistle Synonym: [Carduus vulgaris Savi] Life span: biennial herbs Roots: from taproots Leaves: leaves of basal rosette mainly 5-25 cm long, 2-8 cm wide, merely doubly serrate-dentate to doubly pinnatifid, tomentose beneath, coarsely hispid above; cauline leaves alternate, mainly bipinnatifid, with vesture as in the basal ones; spiny-winged by decurrent leaf bases Height: stems mainly 3-12 (15) dm tall Involucre: involucres 28-40 mm high, 35-70 mm wide, the bracts narrowly lanceolate, with spreading spine-tips, tomentose marginally, the dorsal ridge not developed, the inner sometimes contorted apically Surface: spines 1-4 mm long, yellowish Petals: corollas rose purple Style: style tip 4-5 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 68, 102 Habitat: Meadows, fields, roadsides, and other disturbed sites; widespread in North America; adventive from Europe Note: This Old World thistle is a weed of rangelands and other places throughout its areal extent; it is not difficult to eradicate from small areas, however.

Horseweed_(Conyza_Less.)

Horseweed (Conyza Less.)


Life span: annual herbs Roots: from taproots, with watery juice Growth form: stems erect, commonly branched Leaves: leaves alternate, simple Inflorescence: heads numerous, in cylindric to conic panicles Bracts: involucral bracts more or less imbricate, herbaceous medially Receptacle: receptacle flat or nearly so, naked Flowers: rays minute, white or purplish, scarcely surpassing the pappus; disk flowers seldom more than 20, perfect, fertile Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Fruit: achenes 1- or 2-nerved or nerveless

Horseweed_(Conyza_canadensis_(L.)_Cronq.)

Horseweed (Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronq.)


Common name: Horseweed Synonym: [Erigeron canadensis L.] Life span: annuals Height: mainly 0.5-10 dm tall Surface: glabrous or spreading-hairy Leaves: alternate; leaves 2-8 (10) cm long, 2-8 cm wide, linear to oblanceolate, ciliate-serrate, often deciduous by late anthesis Inflorescence: heads numerous, inconspicuous Involucre: involucres 2-3.5 (4) mm high, (2.5) 3-7 mm wide, the bracts lance-subulate, the midvein glandular-thickened, herbaceous medially, glabrous or strigose, green on the inner face when reflexed Flowers: rays white or purplish Chromosome number: 2n = 9, 18, 54 Habitat: Weedy species, often in riparian or other moist disturbed sites; widespread in North America; Europe

*Emilia_Cassini

Emilia Cassini


Life span: annual or perennial Leaves: alternate, mainly basal Inflorescence: heads discoid, solitary or in lax corymbs Involucre: involucres somewhat swollen at base, phyllaries in a single row Flowers: disk florets bisexual, red, lavender, purple, or dark yellow; corolla tubular, with a cylindric throat, lobes narrow-lanceolate Pappus: pappus soft, white or purplish, setose

*Emilia_sonochifolia_(L.)_DC.

Emilia sonochifolia (L.) DC.


Stems: up to 5 dm tall, slender Leaves: spatulate below with auricled bases, upper lanceolate to elliptic with auricled bases and somewhat pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads small, on long peduncles; corolla purple or lilac, about 7-8 mm long Involucre: phyllaries linear 8-10 mm, involucre cylindric, less than 1 cm long Fruit: achene 3mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 10 Habitat: disturbed sited, old fields, roadsides

*Erechtites_Raf.

Erechtites Raf.


Growth form: erect herbs Leaves: alternate Inflorescence: discoid many-flowered corymbose-paniculate heads; marginal flowers pistillate, fertile; central flowers perfect, fertile Involucre: involucre cylindric; phyllaries in 1 series Receptacle: receptacle concave Fruit: achenes linear-oblong Pappus: pappus of copious capillary soft white bristles

Fireweed,_(PilewortErechtites_hieraciifolia_(L.)_Raf.)

Fireweed, Pilewort (Erechtites hieraciifolia (L.) Raf.)


Common names: Fireweed, Pilewort Life span: annual Surface: glabrous or sparingly hirsute Stem: stem striate Height: 0.3-3 m high Leaves: lanceolate or oblong, acute, dentate, or incised, sessile, the upper sometimes auricled at base Inflorescence: heads 1.2-2 cm long, about 6 mm in diameter Flowers: flowers whitish Habitat: woodlands, thickets and waste places

*Eupatorium_L.

Eupatorium L.


Life span: perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, opposite, or whorled, simple Inflorescence: heads discoid Flowers: the flowers all perfect and tubular Involucre: involucres cylindric to campanulate, the bracts striate, imbricate Receptacle: receptacle naked, mainly flat Anthers: anthers obtuse and entire basally, or minutely sagittate Style: style branches with short stigmatic lines and an elongate papillate appendage Pappus: pappus of numerous capillary bristles Fruit: achenes 10-nerved.

Dog_Fennel_(Eupatorium_capillifolium_(Lam.)_Small)

Dog Fennel (Eupatorium capillifolium (Lam.) Small)


Common name: Dog Fennel Stems: clustered, to 2 m tall or more, branched, tending to be puberulent at least below Leaves: lower leaves opposite, upper alternate, glabrous, glandular-punctate, pinnately divided or dissected with filiform divisions mostly 5-10 cm long, often in axillary fascicles Inflorescence: heads many in paniculate inflorescence Involucre: involucre 2-4 mm long, phyllaries tipped Flowers: florets three to six per head, corollas white or greenish white Fruit: achenes 1 mm long, smooth

Dog_Fennel_(Eupatorium_compositifolium_Walt.)

Dog Fennel (Eupatorium compositifolium Walt.)


Common name: Dog Fennel Stems: clustered to 1 m tall or more, branched, puberulent to pilose below Leaves: lower leaves mostly 6-12 cm long, opposite, upper alternate, pinnately divided or dissected with linear segments Inflorescence: heads in panicle, fragrant, very numerous, three to six florets per head Involucre: involucre 4-5 mm long, phyllaries mucronate Flowers: corollas white Fruit: achene 1-2 mm long Habitat: pinelands, old fields, dry soil

*Galinsoga_Cav.

Galinsoga Cav.


Life span: annual Leaves: simple, opposite Flowers: head small, radiate, the rays few, short, broad, only slightly surpassing the disk, white or pink, pistillate and fertile; involucral bracts few, partly greenish, each subtending a ray; receptacle conic, chaffy throughout, its bracts membranous, narrow, and nearly flat; disk-flowers perfect, yellow Style: style-branches flattened, with short minutely hariy appendages Fruit: achenes 4-angled, scarcely compressed or especially the outer, somewhat flattened parallel to the involucral bracts Pappus: pappus of several or numerous scales, often awn-tipped, that of the rays often reduced or wanting

Gumweed_(Grindelia_Wooled.)

Gumweed (Grindelia Wooled.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Growth form: sometimes woody at the base Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, more or less resinous-punctate, usually sessile, often clasping Inflorescence: heads radiate or discoid, the rays 10-45, pistillate, fertile, yellow; involucres imbricate, more or less resinous Involucre: bracts thickish, with pale appressed base and often squarrose or revolute herbaceous tips Receptacle: receptacle naked, flattish Flowers: disk flowers fertile, yellow Style: style branches with slender hispidulous appendages Pappus: pappus of 2-8 stiff, often curved, deciduous awns Fruit: achenes compressed to angular, glabrous Chromosome number: x = 6

Curlycup_gumweed_(Grindelia_squarrosa_(Pursh)_Dunal)

Curlycup gumweed (Grindelia squarrosa (Pursh) Dunal)


Common name: Curlycup gumweed Life span: biennial or short-lived perennial Height: 1-3 feet tall Roots: fibrous Leaves: alternate, 1-3 inches long, saw-toothed margins, gland-dotted and exude a sticky material (lanceolate) Flowers: heads are bright yellow, 1 inch in diameter, borne singly on the end of the branches Involucre: curved bracts surrounding the flower also secrete a sticky substance Seeds: oblong, cream colored, four-angled, deeply ridged Habitat: Found in pastures, rangelands, roadsides and waste areas sometimes forming nearly pure stands. Highly drought resistant and increase after periods of dryness

Sneezweed_(Helenium_L.)

Sneezweed (Helenium L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, glandular-punctate, decurrent or clasping, lanceolate Inflorescence: heads solitary or few to numerous in corymbose clusters, radiate, yellow Involucre: involucral bracts in 2 or 3 series, the bracts subequal or the inner shorter and narrower, herbaceous or essentially so, soon deflexed Receptacle: receptacle naked, convex or conic Flowers: rays pistillate or neuter; disk flowers numerous, perfect, yellow Pappus: pappus of 5-10 scarious or hyaline scales Fruit: achenes truncately obpyramidal, 4- or 5-angled, with as many intermediate ribs

Sunflower_(Helianthus_L.)

Sunflower_(Helianthus L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves simple, opposite on the lower part of the stem, usually alternate on the upper part of the stem Inflorescence: heads radiate, showy, solitary or few in corymbs Involucre: involucral bracts imbricate or subequal, herbaceous Receptacle: receptacle flat to convex, chaffy throughout, its bracts clasping the achenes Flowers: ray flowers conspicuous, yellow, neuter; disk flowers yellow or reddish, fertile Pappus: pappus usually of 2 main awns, scalelike at base, sometimes with additional scales present Fruit: achenes narrowly obovate in outline, 4-angled or obcompressed

Blueweed_(Helianthus_ciliaris_DC.)

Blueweed (Helianthus ciliaris DC.)


Common name: Blueweed Life span: perennial rhizomatous herbs Height: stems 5-7 dm tall Surface: glabrous, glaucous Leaves: leaves mainly opposite, sessile or very short petiolate, 3-6 cm long, 3-15 mm wide, linear to broadly lanceolate, entire or somewhat pinnately lobed, glabrous and glaucous, conspicuously 3-nerved when lanceolate Inflorescence: heads solitary, 12-25 mm wide Bracts: bracts 3-5 mm wide, obtuse, ovate to broadly lanceolate or obovate, conspicuously ciliate, glabrous or slightly puberulent dorsally, 4-7 mm long and 3-5 mm wide Flowers: rays 12-18, about 1 cm long Petals: disk corollas ;5-6 mm long, basally puberulent and yellow, the lobes reddish or sometimes the entire corolla red Involucre: bracts entire or 3-toothed, the tips obtuse to acute Fruit: achenes about 3 mm long, black or grayish at maturity Pappus: pappus of the disk of 2 broadly ovate-acuminate scales; ray pappus absent or of 1 to 2 linear to lanceolate scales Habitat: Alluvium in oak-maple-grass community; Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico

Jerusalem_artichoke_(Helianthus_tuberosus_Nutt.)

Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus Nutt.)


Common name: Jerusalem artichoke Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from tubers and rhizomes Height: stems mostly 1--3 m tall Surface: more or less hairy Leaves: leaves opposite below, becoming alternate above, petiolate, the blades mostly 10--25 cm long, 4-12 cm wide, serrate Inflorescence: heads several to many in a corymbiform cluster, the disk yellow, 1.5-2.5 cm wide Involucre: bracts narrowly lanceolate, acuminate or subattenuate, subequal to or surpassing the disk, ciliate marginally and scabrid-hispidulous Flowers: rays 10-20, 2-4 cm long Chromosome number: 2n = 102 Habitat: Cultivated for its edible tubers, persisting following introduction and difficult to eradicate, widespread in the eastern U.S. Note: This species has been grown since pre-Columbian times for its edible crisp tubers, which reputedly store food as inulin, not starch. Inulin is said to be indigestible by humans.

*Hemizonia_DC.

Hemizonia DC.


Life span: annual or perennial Surface: usually more or less glandular and viscid and heavy scented Leaves: alternate or the lower sometimes opposite Inflorescence: heads not large, many- or sometimes few-flowered Involucre: involucral bracts rounded on the back, partly enclosing the turgid more or less oblique ray achenes Receptacle: receptacle flat or convex, chaff deciduous Flowers: flowers yellow or white, ray flowers in 1 series pistillate, fertile; disk flowers tubular, 5-toothed, fertile or sterile Pappus: no pappus in ray flowers; pappus scalelike or wanting in disk flowers

*Hemizonia_congesta_DC.

Hemizonia congesta DC.


Stem: virgate, 1-5 dm high, with rather few strict or lax branches only above or from the base upward Surface: herbage densely villous throughout, the hairs sometimes appressed but never silky, somewhat viscid toward heads but the glands usually obscure Leaves: basal rosette none or obscure; lower leaves usually prominent at anthesis, remotely denticulate Inflorescence: heads in small terminal clusters or solitary at the ends of the short branches and often a few scattered lateral heads Involucre: involucre 6-9 mm high, the tips of the phyllaries equaling to much exceeding the body Chromosome number: n = 14 Habitat: fields and open hillsides

Golden_aster_(Heterotheca_Cassini)

Golden aster (Heterotheca Cassini)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire Inflorescence: heads radiate Involucre: involucres campanulate to hemispheric; bracts numerous, narrow, imbricated in several series Receptacle: receptacle convex, naked Flowers: rays yellow, pistillate and fertile Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Flowers: disk flowers numerous, the pappus present and usually double, the inner of capillary bristles, the outer (when present) of short scales or bristles Fruit: achenes hairy

*Hieracium_L.

Hieracium L.


Life span: perennial Stems: rhizomatous herbs with milky juice Leaves: leaves alternate or basal and still alternate, entire or toothed, simple Inflorescence: heads few to numerous, in corymbose clusters Flowers: flowers all raylike, yellow to orange or white Involucre: involucres cylindric to hemispheric; bracts more or less imbricate Receptacle: receptacle naked Pappus: pappus usually of brownish capillary bristles Fruit: achenes terete or prismatic, more or less strongly ribbed

Poverty-weed_(Iva_L.)

Poverty weed (Iva L.)


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves opposite, at least below Inflorescence: heads discoid, the pistillate flowers few Petals: with corolla tubular or lacking Involucre: involucres campanulate; bracts subequal or imbricate in 1-3 series, sometimes with a short inner series subtending the achenes Receptacle: receptacle chaffy, the receptacular bracts linear to spatulate Flowers: staminate flowers with abortive pistils, the styles undivided, the filaments monadelphous Anthers: anthers obtuse basally, almost distinct Pappus: pappus none Fruit: achenes compressed

Marsh-elder_(Iva_xanthifolia_Nutt.)

Marsh-elder (Iva xanthifolia Nutt.)


Common name: Marsh-elder Life span: Coarse perennial herbs Height: mainly 4-25 dm tall Stems: simple or branched Surface: essentially glabrous below, glandular above Leaves: leaves opposite below, petiolate, the blades 4-20 cm long and about as wide, broadly ovate to lance-ovate, serrate and sometimes lobed, green above, canescent beneath Inflorescence: heads 2-4 mm thick, numerous, borne ebracteate in paniculate clusters Bracts: involucral bracts distinct, ovate Flowers: pistillate flowers 5 Fruit: achenes sparsely pilose apically, about 2 mm long. Chromosome number: 2n = 36 Habitat: Ruderal weeds of disturbed soils; Alberta to Saskatchewan, south to Washington, Arizona, and New Mexico; widely distributed elsewhere

Lettuce_(Lactuca_L.)

Lettuce (Lactuca L.)


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, entire or pinnatifid Flowers: flowers all raylike, yellow, blue, or white Inflorescence: heads paniculately arranged Involucre: involucres cylindrical; bracts imbricate in several series Receptacle: receptacle flat, naked Pappus: pappus copious, of white or brownish capillary bristles Fruit: achenes oval, oblong, or linear in outline, compressed, ribbed on each face, short- to long-beaked

Prickly_lettuce_(Lactuca_serriola_L.)

Prickly lettuce (Lactuca serriola L.)


Common name: Prickly lettuce Synonym: [L. scariola, scarriola, orthographic variants] Life span: biennial or winter annual herbs Growth form: stems erect Height: 3-18 dm tall Surface: hispid below or glabrous overall Leaves: alternate; leaves mainly 3-30 cm long, 1-10 cm wide, pinnatifid or pinnately lobed, or merely spinose-toothed, the blades vertically oriented (twisted at the base), setose-hispid on main veins beneath Involucre: involucres 7-15 mm high at maturity Inflorescence; heads mostly 6- to 12-flowered Flowers: the flowers yellow, fading blue, several to numerous in a paniculate cluster Pappus: pappus white Fruit: achenes brown, the body obovate to oblong in outline, flattened, hispid along margin apically, 3-4.5 mm long, with 5-8 longitudinal nerves on each face, the beak 3-7 mm long Chromosome number: 2n = 18 Habitat: Ruderal weeds, widely distributed in the U. S.; adventive from Europe Note: Prickly lettuce is reported to produce fertile hybrids with L. sativa (q.v.). This species invades lower elevation range lands, where it is eaten by wildlife and livestock. However, the plants have been implicated in poisoning of cattle.

Blue_lettuce_(Lactuca_pulchella_(Pursh)_DC.)

Blue lettuce (Lactuca pulchella (Pursh) DC.)


Common name: Blue lettuce Life span: perennial Roots: deep, rhizomatous Growth form: erect leafy stem; plants exude a white milky sap when injured Height: up to 4 feet tall Leaves: alternate; 2-6 inches long, lance-shaped or linear, lower leaves often prominently toothed, smooth, bluish-green, light midribs Flowers: blue to purple Fruit: achene black or brown, short beak bearing a tuft of white hairs Habitat: foothills, marshes, canals, streambanks, roadsides, meadows, pastures, and cultivated fields

Biennial_or_perennial_herbs_(Matricaria_L.)

biennial or perennial herbs (Matricaria L.)


Life span: biennial or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, 2- to 3- pinnatisect, with ultimate segments linear-filiform Inflorescence: heads radiate, few to many in corymbose clusters Involucre: involucres broadly campanulate, the bracts in several series, the margins scarious Receptacle: receptacle hemispheric, solid, naked Flowers: rays pistillate, white; disk flowers 5-lobed, perfect, yellow Pappus: pappus a small crown Fruit: achenes laterally compressed, with 3 smooth ribs on the ventral surface and 1 or 2 (rarely more) resin glands at the apex of the dorsal face. Note: authors of Flora Europaea (Vol. 4) in segregate Chamomilla (q.v.) from Matricaria. The genera are much alike and are separated mainly on technical characteristics that are discernible only when fruit is mature.

Pineapple-weed_(Matricaria_matricarioides_(Less.)_C._L._Porter)

Pineapple-weed (Matricaria matricarioides (Less.) C. L. Porter)


Common name: Pineapple-weed Life span: annual Height: up to 1+ feet tall Leaves: alternate; greatly divided into very short narrow segments Flowers: yellowish-green, heads are cone shaped 1/16 to 1/3 inch high, head surrounded by several overlapping bracts with papery margins, ray flowers are lacking Habitat: common pest of roadsides, gardens, and croplands Note: gives off "pineapple" odor when crushed; Anthemis cotula L. (Mayweed chamomile) has a similar appearance but has a disagreeable odor and white ray flowers.

False_Dandelion_(Pyrrhopappus_DC.)

False Dandelion (Pyrrhopappus DC.)


Common name: False Dandelion Life span: annual, biennial or perennial herbs Root: taproot, milky juicy Growth form: herbage variously glabrous to loosely or lanately pubescent Leaves: alternate or basal, dentate or pinnately undulate-parted to subentire, pubescent at least along the midvein on the lower surface and often elsewhere but glabrescent in age; upper leaves reduced to sessile bracts Inflorescence: inflorescence of 1-several long-pedunculate heads Involucre: principal involucral bracts linear-lanceolate, green but usually dark and thickened toward the apex, marginally subscarious; outer calyculate bracts subulate to linear, in 2 or 3 weakly defined series, the outermost 2-6 often prominent and long; all incolucral bracts becoming dry and deflexed at maturity Receptacle: receptacle naked, convex Flowers: florets numerous, 45-100, all ligulate and fertile, corolla lemon yellow or infrequently light yellow Fruit: achene with a prominent, ribbed body, contracted below and abruptly tapering above to a narrow, filiform beak about as long or longer that the body Pappus: pappus of numerous capillary bristles, sordid or off-white to dirty reddish, subtended by a few villous hairs, pappus bristles persistent, deciduous or falling as a unit with the beak

Groundsel_(Senecio_L.)

Groundsel (Senecio L).


Life span: annual, biennial, or perennial herbs Roots: with rhizomes, caudices, or taproots, the juice watery Growth form: stems erect, ascending, or decumbent at the base Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire, toothed, or lobed to pinnatifid, (lanceolate) Inflorescence: heads solitary, or few to many in corymbose cymes Involucre: involucral bracts in 1 series, often with smaller bractlets at the base, green throughout or the margins scarious or hyaline, or variously colored Receptacle: receptacle flat or convex, naked Flowers: ray flowers yellow or orange, or sometimes lacking Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Style: style branches flattened Fruit: achenes terete, 5- to 10-nerved, glabrous or pubescent. Note: This genus consists of a series of species that intergrade freely when they are in contact with others of the group. Because of hybridization the species lines tend to be blurred, and it is not possible to place all specimens with confidence. Keys are, and have been, based on features that are subject to interpretation

Goldenrod_(Solidago_L.)

Solidago L.


Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from a caudex or rhizome Leaves: leaves alternate, simple Inflorescence: heads numerous, radiate, yellow, borne in paniculate, racemose, or cymose clusters Involucre: involucres imbricate in several series or subequal, commonly chartaceous or with the tips green Receptacle: receptacle flat, naked Flowers: ray flowers fertile; disk flowers perfect, fertile Anthers: anthers subentire basally Style: style branches with lanceolate appendages Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Fruit: achenes few nerved, pubescent.

Goldenrod_(Solidago_canadensis_L.)

Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.)


Common name: Goldenrod. Synonym: [S. altissima L.; S. lepida DC.] Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from creeping rhizomes Height: stems 3-12 dm tall or more Surface: herbage puberulent with short incurved hairs, or the stems glabrous below Leaves: basal leaves often deciduous or withered at anthesis; cauline leaves numerous and crowded, 2-10 cm long or more, 3-20 mm wide, lanceolate to lance-linear, or narrowly elliptic, tapering to a sessile base, 3-nerved, serrate to entire, attenuate to acuminate apically Inflorescence: inflorescence commonly (but not always) of recurved branches with secund heads Involucre: involucres 2-5 mm high and about as broad, the bracts lance- attenuate, scarious or greenish Flowers: rays 10-17, yellow, 1-3 mm long Chromosome number: n = 9, 20-24, 27 Habitat: Riparian and other mesic sites; widespread in North America Note: This plant serves as host for a peculiar red and black leaf beetle. The species is transitional to S. sparsiflora.

*Sonchus_L.

Sonchus L.


Life span: annual or perennial herbs Roots: from taproots or deep-seated, rhizome-like roots, the juice milky Leaves: leaves chiefly cauline, alternate, simple, entire to lobed or pinnatifid; can be lanceolate Inflorescence: heads few to several Involucre: involucral bracts imbricate in several series, green or greenish (drying brownish), the inner ones with hyaline margins Receptacle: receptacle naked Flowers: corollas of ray flowers only, yellow, perfect Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Style: style branches semicylindrical Fruit: achenes compressed, several to many nerved, beakless, glabrous

*Tanacetum_L.

Tanacetum L.


Life span: perennial herbs Roots: from a rhizome Leaves: leaves alternate, 2- to 3-pinnatifid Inflorescence: heads discoid, numerous, corymbose Flowers: flowers perfect Involucre: involucres hemispheric; bracts in 2 or 3 series, more or less imbricate, the margins scarious Receptacle: receptacle low-convex, naked Anthers: anthers entire at the base Pappus: pappus a minute crown Fruit: achenes 5-angled, truncate

Dandelion_(Taraxacum_Weber)

Dandelion (Taraxacum Weber)


Life span: perennial Growth form: scapose herbs with milky juice Roots: from taproots Leaves: leaves all basal, pinnatifid to subentire Inflorescence: heads solitary on a scape; involucral bracts in 2 series, herbaceous, the outer shorter, the inner often dilated or appendaged apically, usually with broad hyaline or scarious margins, at least basally Receptacle: receptacle naked Flowers: corollas of ray flowers only, perfect, yellow Pappus: pappus of capillary bristles Style: style branches semicylindric Fruit: achenes angular or terete, prominently nerved or ribbed, usually spinulose or with ridges near the body apex, glabrous, beaked

Common_dandelion_(Taraxacum_officinale_Weber_ex_Wiggers)

Common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale Weber ex Wiggers)


Common name: Common dandelion. Height: plants mostly 3-60 cm tall Growth form: from a simple or branched caudex Leaves: leaves 5-40 cm long, 1-10 cm wide, pinnately lobed to pinnatifid, the terminal lobe broader than the lateral ones Surface; scapes villous to subglabrous, often moderately to densely villous below the head Involucre: involucres 15-25 mm high in flower, the outer bracts lance-acuminate, reflexed, the inner ones lance- attenuate, not or scarcely dilated apically, rarely appendaged Flowers: rays yellow, or bluish externally Fruit: achene bodies 3-4 mm long, straw colored to olive drab, the beak usually 2-4 times longer than the body Pappus: pappus white Chromosome number: 2n = 24, 48 Habitat: Ubiquitous brightly flowered weedy species; widespread in North America; adventive from Eurasia

Goat_beard_(Tragopogon_L.)

Goat beard (Tragopogon L.)


Life span: biennial (annual or perennial) herbs Roots: from thickened taproots, the juice milky Leaves: leaves alternate, entire, clasping basally Inflorescence: heads solitary or few and corymbose Flowers: flowers all raylike, perfect, yellow or purple Involucre: involucres cylindric or campanulate; bracts uniseriate, equal Receptacle: receptacle naked Pappus: pappus of plumose bristles united at the base Fruit: achenes 5- to 10-nerved, slender-beaked or the outer beakless

Oyster-plant,_salsify_(Tragopogon_porrifolius_L.)

Oyster-plant, salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius L.)


Common name: Oyster-plant, salsify Life span: biennial herbs Growth form: stems erect, milky juice Height: 3-10 dm tall, simple or branched above Leaves: alternate; leaves mainly 5-30 cm long, linear-subulate (long and thin), the apex not recurved Inflorescence: peduncles enlarged and fistulose below the heads Involucre: involucres cylindric to campanulate; bracts commonly 8 (5-11), 2.5-4 cm long in flower, 4-7 cm long in fruit Flowers: rays purple, subequal to or shorter than the bracts Fruit: achenes 25-35 mm long Pappus: pappus brownish Chromosome number: n = 6 Habitat: Cultivated plants, escaping and persisting on canal banks, in moist meadows, and along roadsides; widespread in much of the U. S.; introduced from Europe.

Meadow_salsify_(Tragopogon_pratensis_L.)

Meadow salsify (Tragopogon pratensis L.)


Common name: Meadow salsify Life span: biennial herbs Growth form: stems erect Height: 1.5-8 dm tall Stems: simple or branched Leaves: alternate; lanceolate; leaves mainly 5-30 cm broad, tapering from a broadly expanded base to 2 cm wide, recurved apically Inflorescence: peduncles not especially enlarged in flower or in fruit Involucre: involucres campanulate; bracts commonly 8, 12-24 mm long in flower, 18-38 mm long in fruit Flowers: rays chrome-yellow, equaling or surpassing the bracts Fruit: achenes 15-25 mm long Pappus: pappus off-white Chromosome number: n = 6 Habitat: Disturbed sites; widespread in the U. S.; adventive from Europe

*Vernonia_Schreber

Vernonia Schreber


Life span: perennial herbs Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire or toothed Inflorescence: heads corymbose-paniculate Involucre: involucres campanulate to cylindrical, the bracts imbricated in several series, purplish to greenish Receptacle: receptacle flat, naked Flowers: ray florets none; disk flowers purple to rose, rarely whitish Anthers: anthers coherent, sagittate at base Fruit: achenes 8- to 10-ribbed, truncate at apex; pappus double, the inner of long capillary bristles, the outer of short bristles or small paleae, purple to tawny

Cocklebur_(Xanthium_L.)

Xanthium L.


Life span: annual Growth form: herbs with fleshy large cotyledons Roots: taproot Leaves: leaves alternate, petiolate, the blades broad, rough-hairy; cordate Inflorescence: heads unisexual, discoid, or the corolla lacking; staminate heads uppermost, many flowered; involucre of pistillate heads enclosing the 2 flowers, forming a 2-chambered bur armed with hooked prickles, the corolla lacking Involucre: involucral bracts in 1-3 series, separate Receptacle: receptacle cylindric, chaffy; filaments monadelphous, the anthers separate Pistil: pistil vestigial, the styles unbranched Fruit: achenes large, solitary in each chamber Pappus: pappus none

Cocklebur_(Xanthium_strumarium_L.)

Cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium L.)


Common name: Cocklebur Synonym: [X. orientale L.; X. italicum Moretti; X. pensylvanicum Wallr.] Life span: annual monoecious herbs Height: stem 1.5-10 dm tall or more Stem: simple or branched, scabrous, often purple mottled Leaves: alternate; leaves petiolate, the blades mainly 2-12 cm long and about as broad, ovate to oval or orbicular, obtuse to cuneate or cordate basally, scabrous, dentate and often lobed Inflorescence: heads in few to many short axillary clusters Fruit: burs broadly cylindric to ovoid, 1-3.5 cm long, with 2 more or less incurved beaks apically, covered with stout hooked prickles Chromosome number: 2n = 36 Habitat: Weedy species of cultivated and other disturbed lands; adventive (?) from the eastern U. S. Note: var. canadense (Miller) T. & G. [X. canadense Miller] seedlings are poisonous to livestock, and they produce dermatitis in some people.


Vervain_Family_(VERBENACEAE_St._Hil.)

Vervain Family (VERBENACEAE St. Hil.)


Common name: Vervain Family Growth form: herbs or shrubs Leaves: leaves mostly opposite, simple, estipulate Inflorescence: inflorescence cymose, racemose, or of spikes or panicles Flowers: flowers sessile or pedicellate, perfect or sometimes imperfect, more or less irregular Calyx: calyx persistent, 2- to 4 (5) -toothed or -lobed Petals: corolla regular or irregular, funnelform or salverform, usually with a well-developed tube, the limb commonly 4- or 5-lobed Stamens: stamens 4 and didymous or rarely 2 or 5, inserted on the corolla tube Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 2- to 4-loculed, the ovules 1 per locule Style: style simple, with 1 or 2 stigmas Fruit: fruit dry, of 2-4 nutlets Chromosome number: x = 5-12

*Verbena_L.

Verbena L.


Life span: annual or perennial Stem: procumbent Branches: procumbent Surface: glabrous or pubescent Leaves: mostly opposite Flowers: small or medium Calyx: usually tubular, 5-ribbed, 5-toothed Corolla: salverform to funnelform, tube straight or curved, the limb spreading, 5-lobed, regular or slightly 2-lipped Stamens: 4, didynamous, included Ovary: entire or somewhat 4-lobed apically, 4-loculed, each locule with 1 ovule Fruit: dry, enclosed in the calyx, separating into 4 nutlets at maturity


Violet_Family_(VIOLACEAE_Batsch)

Violet Family (VIOLACEAE Batsch)


Common name: Violet Family Life span: annual or perennial herbs Leaves: leaves basal or cauline and alternate, simple or pedatifid Flowers: flowers perfect, irregular, or sometimes cleistogamous, solitary Sepals: sepals 5, distinct or nearly so Petals: petals 5, the lowermost spurred Stamens: stamens 5 Pistil: pistils 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 1-loculed, 3- to 5-carpelled Style: style 1 Stigma: stigma usually lobed Fruit: fruit a loculicidal capsule Chromosome number: x = 6-13, 17, 21, 23

*Verbena_L.

Verbena L.


Growth form: herbs Leaves: opposite leaves and bracted Flowers: sessile, borne in terminal, solitary, corymbed or panicled spikes Calyx: calyx 5-toothed, one of the teeth often shorter than the others Corolla: tubular, often curved, salverform, the limb spreading, 5-lobed, slightly 2-lipped or regular Stamens: included, the upper pair occasionally without anthers Style: slender, mostly 2-lobed Fruit: dry, mostly enclosed by the calyx, at length separating into 4 linear or linear-oblong crustaceous smooth, papillose or rugose nutlets, each 1-seeded


Waterfern_Family_(SALVINIACEAE_Reichb.)

Waterfern Family (SALVINIACEAE Reichb.)


Common name: Waterfern Family Growth form: plants small aquatic free-floating or growing on mud Roots: rhizomatous Leaves: 2-ranked or in whorls, opposite or alternate, simple or lobed Sporocarps: soft, thin-walled, borne single or 2 or more on a common stalk at the base of the leaves, 1-loculed, each containing a central often branched receptacle bearing microsprangia or meagasprangia

Waterfern_(Salvinia_Adans.)

Waterfern (Salvinia Adans.)


Leaves: dimorphic, aerial and submerged from compressed floating rootstock, without roots Sori: sori indusiate Sporangia: megasporangium with one megaspore, in contrast to microsporangium with numerous microspores


Waterlily_Family_(NYMPHAEACEAE)

Salisb. Waterlily Family (NYMPHAEACEAE Salisb.)


Common name: Waterlily Family Life span: perennial Growth form: aquatic plants Roots: from submersed rhizomes Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, the blades floating on the surface or rarely emergent, cordate Flowers: flowers perfect, regular, solitary, long pedicellate; perianth segments distinct Sepals: sepals mostly 3-12, green or petaloid Petals: petals usually many, showy (scalelike in Nuphar) Stamens: stamens numerous Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: ovary superior or partly inferior, several- to many-loculed Fruit: fruit a leathery berry Chromosome number: x = 12-29+

*Brasenia_Schreb.

Brasenia Schreb.


Growth form: aquatic Stems: slender stems that may attain a length of 2m or more Surface: all submerged parts coated with a gelatinous substance Leaves: oval, long-petioled, centrally peltate, floating, palmately veined

Watershield_(Brasenia_schreberi_Gmel.)

Watershield (Brasenia schreberi Gmel.)


Common name: Watershield Leaves: 5-10 cm long, 3.5-5 cm wide, thickish, rounded at each end Flowers: purple, 1-1.2 cm in diameter, borne on long, stout peduncles; sepals and linear petals 3 Stamens: stamens 12-18 Pistil: carpels 4-18, separate Fruit: oblong, 6-8 mm long Habitat: ponds

Water_lily_(Nymphaea_L.)

Water lily (Nymphaea L.)


Growth form: herbs Roots: with thick rhizomes Leaves: leaves alternate, appearing spirally arranged, arising from the rhizome, the blade laterally attached Flowers: flowers long pedunculate, solitary, arising from the rhizome Sepals: sepals usually 4, greenish Petals: petals numerous, pink, white, or variously colored, conspicuous Stamens: stamens numerous, transitional with the petals, the filaments flattened Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary with several to many carpels and locules Stigmas: stigmas several to many, broad, petaloid Fruit: fruit a capsule, many-seeded, tardily dehiscent


Water-milfoil_Family_(HALORAGACEAE_R._Br._in_Flinders)

Water-milfoil Family (HALORAGACEAE R. Br. in Flinders)


Common name: Water-milfoil Family Growth form: aquatic or semiaquatic, herbaceous Life span: perennials Leaves: leaves whorled or alternate, finely dissected Flowers: flowers regular, small, unisexual or perfect, solitary in the upper leaf axils or more often in terminal spikes, 3- or 4-merous Sepals: sepals obsolete or 4 and persistent in fruit Petals: petals 2-4, small, or sometimes wanting Stamens: stamens 4 or 8, the filaments slender, distinct Anthers: anthers large Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary inferior, 1- to 4-loculed, with (1) 2-4 distinct styles Fruit: fruit indehiscent, nutlike or drupelike Chromosome number: x = 7

Water_milfoil_(Myriophyllum_L.)

Water milfoil (Myriophyllum L.)


Stems: Stems slender Growth form: stems floating and submersed or growing on mud Leaves: leaves whorled or alternate, finely pinnately divided Flowers: flowers unisexual, mostly in terminal spikes Calyx: calyx with 4 short lobes or lacking Petals: petals 2-4 when present Stamens: stamens 8 or sometimes 4 Anthers: anthers large Fruit: fruit bony, splitting into 2-4 (1-seeded) nutlets


Water-Plantain_Family_(ALISMATACEAE_Vent).

Water-Plantain Family (ALISMATACEAE Vent).


Common name: Water-Plantain Family Growth form: aquatic or marsh herbs with fibrous roots, scape-like stems and basal long-petioled leaves Inflorescence: a raceme or panicle Flowers: flowers regular, perfect, monecious or dioecious, pedicelled; the pedicels whorled and subtended by bracts Sepals: sepals 3, persistent Petals: petals 3, deciduous Stamens: stamens 6 or more Pistil: ovaries numerous or rarely few, 1-celled, usually 1-ovuled Fruit: carpels becoming achenes; endosperm none

Arrowhead_(Sagittaria_L.)

Arrowhead (Sagittaria L.)


Common name: Arrowhead Lifespan: perennial Growth form: aquatic or mash herbs Leaves: basal, long-petioled Flowers: monoecious or dioecious, borne near the summits of the scapes in whorls of 3, the staminate uppermost; petals usually conspicuous Stamens: stamens usually numerous Pistil: carpels numerous, crowded in globose heads

Arrowhead_(Sagittaria_sagittifolia_L.)

Arrowhead (Sagittaria sagittifolia L.)


Common name: Arrowhead Leaves: emergent leaves strongly sagittate; floating leaves often elliptic; submerged leaves linear Stems: emergent, to 1 m Flowers: 2-3 cm across Fruit: achenes 4-6 mm, with beak less than 1 mm Chromosome Number: 2n = 16,20,22 Habitat: ponds, canals and slow rivers


Willow_Family_(SALICACEAE_Mirbel)

Willow Family (SALICACEAE Mirbel)


Common name: Willow Family Growth form: dioecious dwarf shrubs to large trees Leaves: leaves alternate, simple, entire, serrate, crenate, rarely lobed, usually stipulate, but the stipules often readily deciduous Flowers: flowers borne in aments (catkins), without a perianth, each subtended by a small, scalelike bract (commonly referred to as a scale); staminate flowers of (1) 2 to many stamens; pistillate flowers of a single pistil with 2-4 carpels and as many stigmas Ovary: placentation parietal or basal Fruit: fruit a sessile or stipitate capsule with 2-4 valves Seeds: seeds numerous, small, covered with long white hairs, dispersed easily by wind Chromosome number: x = 11, 12, 19

Willow_(Salix_L.)

Willow (Salix L.)


Growth form: depressed, mat-forming dwarf shrubs to large trees Leaves: buds covered with 1 nonresinous scale Inflorescence: aments erect to spreading, rarely drooping, developing before (precocious), with (coetaneous) or after (serotinous) the leaves, the bracts mostly entire, occasionally with a slightly toothed apex Flowers: flowers with 1, occasionally 2 minute glands near the base Stamens: stamens (1) 2-8 (12), the filaments free or united toward the base, inserted on the base of the bract Fruit: capsules sessile or stipitate, glabrous or pubescent. Note: Difficulty in identification of the willows is compounded by unisexual plants, aments that are sometimes precocious and mostly caducous, and variation among the usually smaller leaves of the flowering branches, which often lack or have inconspicuous stipules, and the usually much larger leaves and stipules of vegetative branchlets or vigorous young shoots.


Woodsorrel_Family_(OXALIDACEAE_Br._in_Tuckey)

Woodsorrel Family (OXALIDACEAE R. Br. in Tuckey)


Common name: Woodsorrel Family Growth form: herbs with sour juice Leaves: leaves palmately 3-foliolate, alternate or basal Flowers: flowers in cymose or umbellate inflorescence, or solitary on axillary peduncles Flowers: flowers perfect, regular Sepals: sepals 5 Petals: petals 5 Stamens: stamens 10, united at the base Pistil: pistil 1 Ovary: the ovary superior, 5-loculed, with 5 styles Fruit: fruit a capsule Chromosome number: x = 5-12 Note: The juice contains oxalic acid, and the plants are occasionally used in salads.

*Oxalis_L.

Oxalis L.


Creeping_woodsorrel_(Oxalis_corniculata_L.)

Creeping woodsorrel (Oxalis corniculata L.)


Common name: Creeping woodsorrel Life span: perennial Growth form: herbs; procumbent to ascending or erect Roots: taproot Stems: caulescent, often rooting at the nodes Height: stems mainly 0.5-5 dm long Surface: pubescent with stiff, straight, appressed to spreading simple hairs Stipules: stipules present Leaves: alternate; leaflets obcordate, 0.5-2 cm long Flowers: flowers 1-7, umbellate, on axillary peduncles Sepals: sepals 5, elliptic Petals: petals 5, yellow, 4-8 mm long Fruit: capsules erect on pedicels that deflex at maturity Seeds: seeds reddish brown with transverse ridges Habitat: Ornamental and weedy species of gardens, lawns, and greenhouses; widespread in the U. S.; native to Europe.


NOXIOUS_WEEDS

RESTRICTED NOXIOUS WEEDS


alkali sida, alkali mallow (Sida hederacea) angel's trumpet, thorn apple, jimsonweed (Datura spp.) -- All parts cause abnormal thirst, distorted sight, delirium, incoherence and coma. Has proved fatal. apple (Malus) -- Seeds contain cyanic acid asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) -- Spears contain mercaptan, a substance which may cause kidney irritation if eaten in large amounts; young stems; may cause rash Austrian fieldcress (Rorippa austriaca) autumn crocus (Sativus) -- Vomiting and nervous excitement autumn crocus, meadow saffron (Colchicum autumnale) -- Leaves are very poisonous belladonna lily (Amaryllis belladonna) -- Bulbs Bermuda buttercup (Oxalis cernua) -- Leaves black locust (Robina pseudo-acacia) -- Young shoots, bark and seeds. black nightshade (Solanum nudiflorum) -- Green berries poisonous but apparently harmless when full ripe. blue mustard, purple mustard (Chorispora tenella) blue weed (Echium vulgare) -- Leaves and stems; may cause rash. boaty cress, heart-podded hoary cress (Cardaria draba) bushman's poison (Acokanthera spp.) -- All parts very poisonous buttercup (Ranunculus spp.) -- Leaves; may cause rash. If eaten, irritant juices may severely injure the digestive system. buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) -- Leaves camelthorn (Alhagi pseudalhagi) Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) canary bird bush (Crotalaria spp.) -- Seeds castor bean (Ricinus communis) -- Seeds fatal cestrum, night-blooming jessamine (Cestrum spp.) -- Leafy shoots cherries, peaches, plums (Prunus spp.) -- Seeds and leaves; seeds contain cyanic acid. chinaberry (Melia azedarach) -- Fruit, flowers and bark Christmas rose (Helleborus niger) -- Rootstocks and leaves; may cause rash. climbing lily (Gloriosa spp.) -- All parts coffee berry, buckthorn (Rhamnus spp.) -- Sap and fruit; may cause rash. common box (Buxus sempenfirens) -- Leaves; may cause rash common mistletoe (Phoradendron spp.) -- Berries fatal. common St. Johnswort, Klamath weed (Hypericum perforatum) common tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) -- Leaves cow cockle (Saponaria vaccaria) -- Seeds cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) -- Leaves and root slightly poisonous; dangerous to cattle crinum lily (Crinum asiaticum) -- Bulbs culvers root (Veronica virginica) -- Roots daphne (Daphne spp.) -- Bark, leaves and fruit fatal. A few berries can kill a child. desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata) -- Whole plant dodder (Cuscuta spp.) dudaim melon (Cucumis melo var. dudaim) dumb cane (Dieffenbachia seguine) -- Stems and leaves cause intense burning and irritation of mouth and tongue. Death can occur if base of tongue swells enough to block the throat. Dutchman's breeches, bleeding-heart (Dicentra spp.) -- Leaves and tubers may be poisonous in large amounts; fatal to cattle. elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) -- Shoots, leaves and bark. Children have been poisoned by using the pithy stems for blowguns. English holly (Ilex aquifolium) -- Berries English ivy (Hedera helix) -- Leaves and berries Euphorbias, snow-on-themountain, poinsettia (Euphorbia spp.) -- Milky sap; may cause rash. Leaves of poinsettia can kill a child. European bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara) -- Leaves and berries European burning bush (Euonymus europa) -- Leaves and fruit field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) field sandbur, coast sandbur (Cenchrus incertus) figs (Ficus spp.) -- Milky sap; may cause rash. flax (Linum usitatissimum) -- Whole plant, especially immature seed pods foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) -- Leaves cause digestive upset and mental confusion; may be fatal in large amounts. garden amaryllis, naked lady (Brunsvigia rosea) -- Bulbs garden huckleberry nightshade (Solanum nigrum) -- Unripe berries and leaves German-ivy (Senecio mikanioides) -- Leaves and stems ginkgo, maidenhair tree (Ginkgo biloba) -- Fruit juice; may cause rash. golden chain (Laburnurn vulgare) -- Leaves and seeds cause severe poisoning. golden dewdrop (Duranta repens) -- Fruits and leaves ground ivy (Nepeta hederacea) -- Leaves and stems hairy whitetop, globe-podded hoary cress (Cardaria pubescens) halogeton (Halogeton glomeratus) horsechestnut, buckeye (Aesculus spp.) -- Leaves and fruit horsenettle, Carolina horsenettle (Solanum carolinense) hyacinth (Hyacinthus) -- Bulb causes nausea, vomiting; may be fatal. hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) -- Leaves impatiens (Impatiens spp.) -- Young stems and leaves iris (Iris spp.) -- Rhizomes; may cause rash. If eaten causes digestive upset but not usually serious. Irish potato (Solanum tuberosum) -- Green skin on tubers Italian thistle (Carduus pycnocephalus) jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) -- All parts, especially roots, (like dumb cane) contain small needle-like crystals of calcium oxalate that cause intense irritation and burning of the mouth and tongue. Jerusalem cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum) -- Fruit jessamine (Jasminum) -- Berries fatal johnsongrass; and other perennial Sorghum spp. (Sorghum halepense) karaka nut (Corynocarpus laevigata) -- Seeds ladyslipper orchid (Cypripedium spp.) -- Hairy, stems and leaves; may cause rash lantana (Lantana spp.) -- Foliage and green berries may be fatal. larkspur, delphinium (Delphinium spp.) -- Young plants and seeds cause digestive upset; may be fatal. laurels (Laurus) -- All parts fatal leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) lens-podded whitetop, lens-podded hoary cress (Cardaria chalepensis) lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis) -- Leaves and flowers very poisonous lobella (Lobelia spp.) -- Leaves, stems, and fruit; may cause rash. longspine sandbur, mat sandbur (Cenchrus longispinus) lupines (Lupinus spp.) -- Leaves, pods and especially seeds matrimony vine (Lycium halimifolium) -- Leaves and young shoots May apple (Podophyllum) -- Apple, foliage and roots contains at least 16 active toxic principles, primarily in the roots. Children often eat the apple with no ill effects but several may cause diarrhea. Mediterranean sage (Salvia aethiopis) medusahead (Taeniatherum (Elymus) caput-medusae) milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) -- Leaves and stems monkshood (Aconitum spp.) -- All parts, especially roots and seeds, very poisonous. Characterized by digestive upset and nervous excitement. moonflower (Calonyction spp.) -- Seeds moonseed (Menispermum) -- Berries (resemble small wild grapes) may be fatal if eaten. mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) -- Leaves musk thistle (Carduus nutans) narcissus, daffodil (Narcissus spp.) -- Bulbs cause nausea, vomiting. may be fatal. nettles (Urtica spp.) -- Leaves; may cause rash. ngaio (Myoporum laeturn) -- Leaves very poisonous oak (Quercus) -- Foliage and acorns. Takes a large amount to poison. oleander (Nerium oleander) -- All parts extremely poisonous. affect the heart. opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) -- Unripe seed pod very poisonous osage orange (Maclura pomifera) -- Milky sap; may cause rash. parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) -- Hairs on leaves and stems: may cause rash. pasque flower (Anemone patens) -- Young plants and flowers perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium) philodendron (Philodendron spp.) -- Stems and leaves pittosporum (Pittosporum spp.) -- Leaves, stem and fruit very poisonous. plumeless thistle (Carduus acanthoides) poison hemlock (Conium maculatus) -- All parts poison oak (Rhus diversiloba) -- Leaves , poverty sumpweed, poverty weed (Iva axillaris) primrose (Primula spp.) -- Leaves and stems; may cause rash. privet (Ligustrum spp.) -- Leaves and berries puncturevine (Tribulus terrestris) purple nutsedge (Cyperus rotundus) quackgrass (Agropyron repens) queensland nut (Macadamia ternifolia) -- Young leaves rhododendron, azalea (Rhododendron) -- Leaves and all parts may be fatal. rhubarb (Rheum rhaponticum) -- Leaves; may cause rash. Large amounts of raw or cooked leaves (contain oxalic acid) can cause convulsions, coma, followed by death. rosary pea (Abrus precatorius) -- A single rosary pea seed causes death. Russian knapweed (Centaurea repens) Scotch thistle and other onopordum thistles (Onopordum spp.) slenderflower thistle (Carduus tenuiflorus) smooth distaff thistle (Carthamus baeticus) sneezeweed (Helenium spp.) -- Whole plant Solanum elaeagnifolium, silverleaf nightshade (white horsenettle) sour dock (Rumex acetosa) -- Leaves southern sandbur (Cenchrus echinatus) sowthistle (Sonchus arvensis, perennial) spider-lily (Hymenocallis americana) -- Bulbs St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) -- All parts when eaten; may cause rash. star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum) -- All parts cause vomiting and nervous excitement. strawberry (Fragaria spp.) -- Fruit; may cause rash. summer adonis (Adonis aestivalis) -- Leaves and stem Texas blueweed (Helianthus ciliaris) tobaccos (Nicotiana spp.) -- Foliage toyon, Christmas berry (Heteromelcs arbutifolia) -- Leaves traveller's joy (Clematis vitalba) -- Leaves tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) -- Leaves, flowers; may cause rash walnut (Juglans spp.) -- Green hull juice; may cause rash. water hemlock (Cicuta) -- All parts fatal, cause violent and painful convulsions wavyleaf thistle (Cirsium undulatum) white snakeroot (Eupatorium rugosum) -- Leaves and stems whitestem distaff thistle (Carthamus leucocaulos) wild garlic (Allium vineale) wisteria (Wisteria) -- Mild to severe digestive upset. Children sometimes poisoned by this plant. woolly distaff thistle (Carthamus lanatus) yellow jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens) -- Flowers and leaves; roots; may cause rash. yellow nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus) yellow oleander (Thevetia peruviana) -- All parts yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) yew (Taxus baccata) -- Foliage, bark and seeds fatal; foliage more toxic than berries zephyr-lily (Zephyranthes spp.) -- Leaves and bulbs