Weed Information: Ipomoea hederacea (morningglory, ivyleaf)
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Ipomoea hederacea (morningglory, ivyleaf)

Family: Convolvulaceae

Description

Flowers bluish to purple on the outside, white to yellow within. Leaves either entire or 3-lobed. It is pictured on pages 290 and 291 of Weeds of the West but is misnamed as Ipomoea hirsutula in the 1991 edition. The photos on pages 292 and 293 of the 1991 Weeds of the West are also Ipomoea hederacea but are misidentified as Ipomoea purpurea. In the 2000 edition of Weeds of the West the plant shown as Ipomoea nil on page 286 is actually Ipomoea purpurea, note the acute sepals in comparison with those of Ipomoea hederacea. The name Ipomoea nil has been used both as a synonym for Ipomoea hederacea and for a separate horticultural species (tall morningglory) which is distinguished by larger flowers and the sepals erect rather than spreading.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Yellow
  • Blue
  • Blue-purple
  • White
  • Multi-colored
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Cyme (simple or branched)
  • Solitary, axillary
Number of Petals
  • 5 petals
Petal Separation
  • United > 75% of length
Petal Tip
  • Rounded
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers regular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
  • 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)
  • 3.5 cm (1.4 inches)
  • 4.0 cm (1.6 inches)
  • 4.5 cm (1.8 inches)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)
  • 3.5 cm (1.4 inches)
  • 4.0 cm (1.6 inches)
  • 4.5 cm (1.8 inches)
  • 5.0 cm (2.0 inches)
Number of Sepals
  • 5 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United at base < 25% length
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)
  • Filaments or anthers NOT united

Carpel Separation
  • Carpels united (or one)
Number of Carpels
  • 1 carpel
  • 2 carpels
  • 3 carpels
  • 4 carpels
Ovary Position
  • Superior (hypogynous)
Fruit Type
  • Capsule, 1-celled
  • Capsule, 2-celled
  • Capsule, 3-celled
  • Capsule, > 3-celled
Fruit Length at Maturity
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
  • 1.5 cm (.60 inch)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
  • 1.5 cm (.60 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Simple (including lobed leaves)
Stipules
  • Lacking
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Palmate
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole < 25% total length
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
  • 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)
  • Cordate (heart)
  • Orbicular (round)
  • Ovate
  • Palmately 3 lobed
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Entire
  • Lobed
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Cordate
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Acute
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Hispid or setose
  • Pubescent
  • Sparsely hairy
Succulence
  • Not succulent

Milky Juice
  • Juice NOT milky (watery)
  • Juice milky
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Not aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Annual
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Prostrate
  • Climbing vine
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 8 - 10 dm (2.6 - 3.3 feet)
  • 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
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

Stem Cross Section
  • Round
Flowering Stem Leaves
  • Stem uniformly leafy
Main Stem Branches
  • Main stem unbranched
  • Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Tap Root

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
  • Arizona
  • Iowa
  • Minnesota
  • North Dakota
  • New Mexico
  • Oklahoma
  • South Dakota
  • Nebraska
Other
  • District of Columbia
Canadian Province or Territory
  • Ontario

  • An Illustrated Guide To Arizona Weeds, 1972 (ISBN 0-8165-0288-9) 338 pages. See page: 238
  • California Growers Weed Identification Handbook, 1968 - 1998 University of California Publication # 4030-1, See page: 112
  • Common Weeds of the United States, 1971 (ISBN 0-486-20504-5) See page: 300
  • Common Weed Seedlings of the North Central States, 2001 North Central Regional Extension Publication # 607 See page: 11
  • Common Weed Seedlings of the United States and Canada, 1978 Coop Ext. Univ. of Georgia, Athens, See page: 15
  • Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 91
  • How to Know the Weeds, 1972, (ISBN# 0-697-04880-2) See page: 133
  • Identifying Seedling and Mature Weeds (Southeastern US) 1980 North Carolina Agricultural Research Service, Bulletin #461 See page: 82
  • Manual of Ohio Weeds, 1931 Ohio Ag. Exp. Station Bull. # 475, See page: 71
  • Nebraska Weeds, 1979 Nebraska Dept. of Ag., Lincoln NE, See page: 145
  • Representative Missouri Weeds and Their Control, 1941 Univ. of Missouri Ag. Exp Station Bulletin #433, See page: 141
  • Some Weedy Plants of North Carolina, 1955 North Carolina Ag. Ext. Circular # 390, See page: 41
  • South Dakota Weeds, 1967 South Dakota State University, See page: 41
  • South Dakota Weeds 2002 South Dakota Dept. of Ag. 523 E. Capitol, Foss Bldg. Pierre, South Dakota 57501 See page: 155
  • S.W.S.S. Weed ID Guide, 1993 Section Number and Five letter code: 4 IPOHE
  • Weed Seeds of the Great Plains, 1993 University of Kansas# 92-125-B ISBN# 0-7006-0651-3 See index #: 156
  • Weeds, 1955 (1980) Walter Conrad Muenscher, ISBN# 0-8014-1266-8 See page: 353
  • Weeds of Kentucky and Adjacent States, 1991 (ISBN 0-8131-1743-7) See page: 34
  • Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 268
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 192
  • Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 142
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1956, Univ. of Delaware Field Manual #1 See species #: 224
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 214 - 216
  • Weeds of the Northern U.S, and Canada, 1999 Royer and Dickinson, (ISBN# 1-55105-221-0) See page: 262 - 263
  • Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 168
  • Weeds of the United States and Their Control, Lorenzi 1987, ISBN# 0-442-25884-4 See page: 240
  • Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 290
  • Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 287
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X
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