Flower Color

• Red (or pink)
• White

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

• Axillary cluster
• Solitary, axillary

Number of Petals

• 0 (no petals)
• 4 petals

Petal Separation

• Completely free to base

Petal Tip

• Erose
• Rounded

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

Flower Sex

• Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)
• Bisexual (perfect)

Number of Styles

• Styles lacking (male flowers only)
• 3 styles

Number of Stamens

• stamens lacking (female flowers only)
• 1 stamen
• more than 10 stamens

Stamens Attached to the Petals

• Stamens NOT attached to the petals

Stamens Connate (united)

• Filaments or anthers NOT united

Carpel Separation

• Carpels united (or one)

Number of Carpels

• 0 (male flowers only or plants producing spores)
• 3 carpels

Ovary Position

• Superior (hypogynous)

Fruit Type

• Capsule, 3-celled

Fruit Length at Maturity

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

Fruit Width at Maturity

• 1 mm (.04 inch) or less

Burs

• Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement

• Opposite

Leaf Type

• Simple (including lobed leaves)

Stipules

• Foliaceous < 2 mm (< .08 inch) long

Tendrils

• Tendrils absent

Venation

• Pinnate

Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio

• Petiole absent (leaf sessile)
• Petiole < 25% total length

Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)

• < 5 mm (< .20 inch)
• 5 - 10 mm (.20 - .40 inch)

Leaf Width

• 1 - 5 mm (.04 - .20 inch)
• 5 - 10 mm (.20 - .40 inch)

Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)

• Oblong
• Orbicular (round)
• Oval

Succulence

• Succulent
• Not succulent

Leaf or Leaflet Margin

• Entire

Leaf or Leaflet Tip

• Notched (emarginate, retuse)
• Aristate
• Rounded (obtuse)

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base

• Oblique
• Rounded

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface

• Glabrous (NO hairs)

Milky Juice

• Juice milky

Woodiness

• Herbaceous

Spines or Thorns

• Spines or Thorns ABSENT

Aromatic (vegetative structures)

• Not aromatic

Life Cycle

• Perennial

Growth Habit (while flowering)

• Prostrate

Plant Height at Maturity

• < 1 cm (< .40 inch)
• 1 - 5 cm (.40 - 2.0 inches)

Wind Dissemination

• Not wind disseminated

Moisture Regime

• Arid

Chlorophyll

• Present

Stem Cross Section

• Round

Flowering Stem Leaves

• Stem uniformly leafy

Main Stem Branches

• Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule

• Tap Root

US State

• Louisiana
• Texas
• Hawaii
• Arizona
• California
• New Mexico
• Nevada
• Oklahoma
• Utah

• An Illustrated Guide To Arizona Weeds, 1972 (ISBN 0-8165-0288-9) 338 pages. See page: 202
• Garden Weeds of Southern California, 1981, See page: 70
• Weeds of California and other Western States, 2007 (ISBN 13: 978-1-879906-69-3) See Page: 726
• Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 X
• Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X