Flower Color

• Yellow

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

• Corymb
• Cyme (simple or branched)
• Head
• Solitary, terminal

Number of Petals

• 5 petals
• 10 petals
• more than 10 petals

Petal Separation

• Completely free to base
• United > 75% of length

Petal Tip

• Pointed
• Rounded

Flower Symmetry

• Flowers regular

Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)

• 2.0 cm (.8 inch)
• 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
• 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)

Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)

• 4.5 cm (1.8 inches)
• 5.0 cm (2.0 inches)
• > 5.0 cm (> 2.0 inches)

Number of Sepals

• sepals lacking
• more than 10 sepals

Sepal Separation

• Completely free to base

Sepal Tip

• Pointed

Flower Sex

• Bisexual (perfect)

Number of Styles

• 1 style

Number of Stamens

• 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

• 1 carpel

Ovary Position

• Inferior (epigynous)

Fruit Type

• Achene

Fruit Length at Maturity

• 5 mm (.20 inch)
• 6 mm (.24 inch)
• 7 mm (.28 inch)

Fruit Width at Maturity

• 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
• 2 mm (.08 inch)
• 3 mm (.12 inch)
• 4 mm (.16 inch)

Burs

• Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement

• Alternate
• Opposite
• Opposite below, alternate above

Leaf Type

• Simple (including lobed leaves)

Stipules

• Lacking

Tendrils

• Tendrils absent

Venation

• Pinnate

Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio

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

Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)

• 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
• 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)

Leaf Width

• 4 - 10 cm (1.6 - 4.0 inches)
• 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)

Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)

• Lanceolate
• Ovate

Leaf or Leaflet Margin

• Serrate

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base

• Acute (cuneate)
• Acuminate (attenuate)

Leaf or Leaflet Tip

• Acuminate (attenuate)
• Acute

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface

• Lower leaf surface more hairy
• Puberulent
• Scabrous (like sand paper)

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

• 1 - 1.5 meters (3.3 - 5.0 feet)
• 1.5 - 2.0 meters (5.0 - 6.6 feet)
• 2 - 2.5 meters (6.6 - 8.3 feet)
• 2.5 - 5 meters (8.3 - 16.6 feet)

Wind Dissemination

• Not wind disseminated

Moisture Regime

• Seasonally saturated
• Mesic

Chlorophyll

• Present

Stem Cross Section

• Ridged
• Round
• Winged

Flowering Stem Leaves

• Stem leaves greatly reduced
• Stem uniformly leafy

Main Stem Branches

• Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule

• Fibrous
• Rhizomatous
• Tuberous

US State

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Massachusetts
• Maine
• Michigan
• Missouri
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia
• Wisconsin
• West Virginia
• Indiana
• Maryland
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• California
• Colorado
• Iowa
• Idaho
• Minnesota
• Montana
• North Dakota
• New Mexico
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• South Dakota
• Utah
• Washington
• Wyoming
• Nebraska

Other

• District of Columbia

Canadian Province or Territory

• New Brunswick
• Nova Scotia
• Ontario
• Prince Edward Island
• Quebec
• Manitoba
• Saskatchewan

• The Biology of Canadian Weeds: Canadian Journal of Plant Science Vol72Pg1367
• California Growers Weed Identification Handbook, 1968 - 1998 University of California Publication # 4030-1, See page: 223
• Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 120
• How to Know the Weeds, 1972, (ISBN# 0-697-04880-2) See page: 198
• Manual of Ohio Weeds, 1931 Ohio Ag. Exp. Station Bull. # 475, See page: 95
• Nebraska Weeds, 1979 Nebraska Dept. of Ag., Lincoln NE, See page: 222
• Ontario Weeds, 1992 Agdex 640, Publication #505 See page: 210
• Representative Missouri Weeds and Their Control, 1941 Univ. of Missouri Ag. Exp Station Bulletin #433, See page: 199
• S.W.S.S. Weed ID Guide, 1993 Section Number and Five letter code: 13 HELTU
• Weeds, 1955 (1980) Walter Conrad Muenscher, ISBN# 0-8014-1266-8 See page: 472, 473
• Weeds, A Golden Guide, 1972 ISBN#0-307-24353-2 See page: 134
• Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 148
• Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 105
• Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 218
• Weeds of the Northeast, 1956, Univ. of Delaware Field Manual #1 See species #: 154
• Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 146
• Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 89
• Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
• Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X