Sheperd's Purse is an annual native to Europe but can be found throughout North America and most of the world. It's common name, Sheperd's Purse, is because it's seeds were though to resemble leather purses in old timey Europe. I think they look more like hearts. C. bursa-pastoris is in the Brassicaceae family, or the Mustard family. This plant starts as a basal rosette, until the flowering stalks shoot up.
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Welcome to the 2015 Kickoff. I have been a bit late in getting this up and running and the plants are coming out in full force! I thought I would start this year with an old classic and very well known plant, the dandelion. This Asteraceae is native to Europe but at this point is widespread around the world.
One thing I love about this plant is that it evokes strong feelings in most people. Rarely does one feel neutral about dandelions. Many homeowners see the yellow flowers as an affront to their perfect lawns. However, I recall one older lady took me aside and spoke to me as though she were letting me in on a secret. In her opinion the dandelion was the most beautiful flower because it was the most difficult to paint. Another woman once told me that she loved the dandelions because they were a great addition to her salad. So there you have it, one person's enemy is another's muse and another's food. I personally find the yellow flowers joyful but I don't eat them. I have a dog. I was once told that there are 100s of species of dandelions and we all get them confused. This is an urban legend. While there are many Asters that have yellow flowers similar to dandelions, they are different enough that what most people see and recognize as dandelions are just that. **This is the last post for 2014. I will continue this blog next spring with more weedy plants and a bigger focus on the grasses.**
I have mis-identified this Aster as both Solidago and Conyza; its young leaves are very nondescript and it does not flower until late in the season. However, once it did flower I was quite pleased to learn that this plant is actually a native aster, Aster ascendens known as Western Aster. I have found Aster ascendens in yards, along roadsides, and on trials in the Wasatch mountains. This plant is in the Asteraceae family and is a perennial. It has abundant purple flowers and when it goes to seed looks like raggedy pom-poms. **Aside: You may have noticed that it has been over a month since my last post. I have been traveling every weekend since early August, and I usually blog about plants on the days starting with "S". Since I am traveling again this weekend, it is time to break habit. I have ~ 6 more plants I want to talk about before everything goes into dormancy or dies for the winter. So let's get started! End of the Aside**
Lunaria annua has 2 big things going for it. 1) it has large purple flowers and 2) it has the most awesome seed pods. This plant flowers early in the growing season but it took until late July for the seed pods to be finally ready for a posting. People do buy and plant this species, but I have found it growing in roadsides and other places where it had not been intentionally planted. L. annua is a mustard - meaning it is in the Brassicaceae family - that can grow as either an annual or biennial. It is native to S.W. Asia and can be found in the western and eastern parts of the United States but not in the mid-west. It is commonly known as the Annual Honesty plant, and sometimes called the money plant because of its pods. However, it should not be confused with another mustard also known as money plant, which has smaller seed pods. Since this is my first mustard post, I will mention that mustard flowers have four petals that are typically arranged to look like an X or + sign, depending on your point of view (see photo below). I know I always say it, but Lathyrus latifolius is a seriously pretty plant. It has beautiful flowers that range from deep pink to almost white, as you can see in the photo below. I do not know why it is called everlasting, but I will venture a guess- it flowers from May-Sept.
A key characteristics is its winged stem (see photo below). One thing that I find fun about this plant is that as the seed pods dry, they break open and curl up which helps to spread the seeds (see photo below). Its leaves split to make two leaflets and at then end of the leaf is a tendril, hence the vine. This plant is a legume and thus in the Fabaceae family. L. latifolius is a perennial plant native to Europe and can be found throughout N. America. Conyza canadensis is one of my absolute favorite weeds. Actually, both of today's post are some of my favorite weeds. This is because I have seen these plants wherever I traveled. I am simply in awe of their ability to thrive is such a wide range of environments. Conyza is also an important species in a long-term experiment that I am involved in at Konza Prairie Biological Station. In 2008, after adding nitrogen and phosphorus to plots tallgrass prairie for 6 years, the plots were transformed from tallgrass prairie to what we called Conyza city. It was an amazing sight to behold (see photo below). Conyza is an annual plant that is native to North America. It is in the Asteraceae family and can be found across the United States. Lactuca serriola is another plant I have grown to love. This plant has two leaf morphologies (this confused me for a long time). Some plants have very lobed leaves, while others are not lobed (see photos below). All leaves have spines on the back of the leaf along the mid-vien (see photo below).
It is an annual or biennial plant that emits a milky substance when cut. It is in the Asteraceae family, can be found across the United States and is native to Eurasia. Chicory is a very widespread plant. I was just in NYC and saw many roadsides covered in it and see the same thing here in SLC. So this plant thrives in two cities with very different climates. This plant has buds all over its stems and rotates the flowers that bloom. Thus, it flowers for a long period of time and it reminds me somehow of a christmas tree in slow motion with bulbs that alternate. Chicory has many uses. Its leave have been cultivated for salads and its dried and ground roots have been used as a coffee additive or substitute. This plant is an biennial or perennial in the Asteraceae family and is native to Europe. It starts growing as a basal rosette (a group of leaves low the the ground) and then puts up its stems that have very few leaves but many flower buds (see below). Its leaves can be mistaken for Lactuca serriola, however, L. serriola (which I will post about at a later date) has spikes long the mid-vein on the back of the leaf, which C. intybus does not (see photo). This plant is way past its peak in SLC, but I was waiting to get a picture of the dry seed and have failed. I stalked many populations all along my coffee routes and never found one. This is a shame because this plant has seeds that remind me of fish hooks. It was really in bloom all May and into early June.
This is a very common plant and I have found it all over undeveloped land here near Salt Lake. Another common name for this species is common stork's bill. This is because of the seed (before it dries to become this hook) resembles a crane's bill (see photo below). This is an annual or biennial in the Geraniaceae family, so it is related to the common house plant geraniums (which are actually in the genus Pelagonium, not Geranium! Who knew?). This widespread plant is found all over the US. This plant is native to the Mediterranean. Convolvulus arvensis is one of the most successful weeds worldwide. That said, its sweet little flowers make it very hard to dislike this plant, even though I spend at least 20 minutes every week weeding it out of my garden. Its flowers come in 2 colors, white or pink (see photos below), which close at night.
C. arvensis is native to Eurasia and is widespread across the US. It is in the Convolvulaceae family and is a perennial. |
Meghan Avolio - EcologistI now live in Washington DC, but I started this blog in Salt Lake City. I am fascinated by the diversity species most of us consider weeds in cities. This BlogI will update this blog with plants I found in Washington DC. But if you do not live in DC, you will still recognize most of the plants discussed here. Posts from 2014/205 were plants I found in Salt Lake City.
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