Flower Color

• Yellow
• Yellow-green
• Green

Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)

• Head
• Solitary, axillary
• Terminal spike

Number of Petals

• 0 (no petals)
• 5 petals

Petal Separation

• United > 75% of length

Petal Tip

• Pointed

Flower Symmetry

• Flowers regular

Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)

• 2 mm (.08 inch)
• 3 mm (.12 inch)
• 4 mm (.16 inch)
• 5 mm (.20 inch)
• 6 mm (.24 inch)

Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)

• 2 mm (.08 inch)
• 3 mm (.12 inch)
• 4 mm (.16 inch)
• 5 mm (.20 inch)
• 6 mm (.24 inch)

Number of Sepals

• sepals lacking
• 5 sepals
• 6 sepals
• 7 sepals
• 8 sepals
• 9 sepals
• 10 sepals

Sepal Separation

• Completely free to base

Sepal Tip

• Rounded
• Square

Flower Sex

• Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)

Number of Styles

• Styles lacking (male flowers only)
• 1 style

Number of Stamens

• stamens lacking (female flowers only)
• 5 stamens

Stamens Attached to the Petals

• Stamens attached to the petals

Stamens Connate (united)

• Anthers united, syngynoecious

Carpel Separation

• Carpels united (or one)

Number of Carpels

• 0 (male flowers only or plants producing spores)
• 1 carpel

Ovary Position

• Inferior (epigynous)

Fruit Type

• Achene

Fruit Length at Maturity

• 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
• 2 mm (.08 inch)
• 3 mm (.12 inch)

Fruit Width at Maturity

• 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
• 2 mm (.08 inch)
• 3 mm (.12 inch)

Burs

• Fruit or seed bur-like

Leaf Arrangement

• Alternate

Leaf Type

• Pinnately dissected

Stipules

• Lacking

Tendrils

• Tendrils absent

Venation

• Pinnate

Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio

• Petiole < 25% total length
• Petiole 25% - 75% total length

Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)

• 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.60 inches)
• 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
• 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)

Leaf Width

• 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
• 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
• 4 - 10 cm (1.6 - 4.0 inches)

Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)

• Lanceolate
• Ovate
• Pinnately lobed

Leaf or Leaflet Margin

• Lobed
• Parted

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base

• Acute (cuneate)
• Acuminate (attenuate)

Leaf or Leaflet Tip

• Acuminate (attenuate)
• Acute
• Rounded (obtuse)

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface

• Glabrous (NO hairs)
• Tomentose

Succulence

• Not succulent

Milky Juice

• Juice NOT milky (watery)

Woodiness

• Herbaceous

Spines or Thorns

• Spines or Thorns ABSENT

Aromatic (vegetative structures)

• Not aromatic

Life Cycle

• Perennial

Growth Habit (while flowering)

• Erect, columnar (narrow)

Plant Height at Maturity

• 5 - 10 cm (2.0 - 4.0 inches)
• 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
• 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
• 4 - 6 dm (1.3 - 2.0 feet)

Wind Dissemination

• Not wind disseminated

Moisture Regime

• Mesic

Chlorophyll

• Present

Stem Cross Section

• Round

Flowering Stem Leaves

• Stem leaves greatly reduced
• Stem uniformly leafy

Main Stem Branches

• Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule

• Rhizomatous

US State

• Illinois
• Kansas
• Missouri
• Texas
• Wisconsin
• Arizona
• Colorado
• Iowa
• Idaho
• Montana
• North Dakota
• New Mexico
• South Dakota
• Utah
• Wyoming
• Nebraska

• An Illustrated Guide To Arizona Weeds, 1972 (ISBN 0-8165-0288-9) 338 pages. See page: 465274
• Common Weeds of the United States, 1971 (ISBN 0-486-20504-5) See page: 408
• How to Know the Weeds, 1972, (ISBN# 0-697-04880-2) See page: 164
• Nebraska Weeds, 1979 Nebraska Dept. of Ag., Lincoln NE, See page: 212
• South Dakota Weeds, 1967 South Dakota State University, See page: 171
• South Dakota Weeds 2002 South Dakota Dept. of Ag. 523 E. Capitol, Foss Bldg. Pierre, South Dakota 57501 See page: 183
• Weeds, 1955 (1980) Walter Conrad Muenscher, ISBN# 0-8014-1266-8 See page: 465
• Weeds, A Golden Guide, 1972 ISBN#0-307-24353-2 See page: 131
• Weeds and Poisonous Plants of Wyoming and Utah 1987 (ISBN 0-941570-06-1) See page: 140
• Weeds of Colorado, 1990 Cooperative Extension, Colorado State Univ. Bulletin 521A, See page: 160
• Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 69
• Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 184
• Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 50
• Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 52
• Weeds of Utah, 1971 UAES Special Report 21, See page: 98
• Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 X
• Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X