Flower Color

• Yellow
• Yellow-green
• White

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

• Axillary cluster
• Axillary spikes
• Solitary, axillary

Number of Petals

• 0 (no petals)

Flower Symmetry

• Flowers regular

Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)

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

Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)

• 4 mm (.16 inch)
• 5 mm (.20 inch)
• 6 mm (.24 inch)
• 7 mm (.28 inch)
• 8 mm (.32 inch)
• 9 mm (.36 inch)
• 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
• 1.5 cm (.60 inch)

Number of Sepals

• 5 sepals

Sepal Separation

• United > 75% of length

Sepal Tip

• Rounded
• Spine-like

Flower Sex

• Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)

Number of Styles

• Styles lacking (male flowers only)
• 2 styles

Number of Stamens

• stamens lacking (female flowers only)
• 2 stamens
• 3 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)
• 2 carpels

Ovary Position

• Halfway (perigynous)

Fruit Type

• Utricle

Fruit Length at Maturity

• 4 mm (.16 inch)
• 5 mm (.20 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
• Opposite
• Opposite below, alternate above

Leaf Type

• Simple (including lobed leaves)

Stipules

• Lacking

Tendrils

• Tendrils absent

Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio

• Petiole absent (leaf sessile)

Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)

• 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
• 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.60 inches)

Leaf Width

• 1 - 5 mm (.04 - .20 inch)

Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)

• Linear or filiform

Succulence

• Succulent

Leaf or Leaflet Margin

• Entire

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base

• Acuminate (attenuate)

Leaf or Leaflet Tip

• Acute
• Rounded (obtuse)

Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface

• Glabrous (NO hairs)
• Glaucous
• Pubescent

Milky Juice

• Juice NOT milky (watery)

Woodiness

• Woody

Spines or Thorns

• Spines or Thorns ABSENT
• Spines on leaves or stems

Aromatic (vegetative structures)

• Not aromatic

Life Cycle

• Perennial

Growth Habit (while flowering)

• Erect, spherical (bushy)

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)

Wind Dissemination

• Fruit, seed, or spore wind borne

Moisture Regime

• Seasonally saturated
• Arid

Chlorophyll

• Present

Stem Cross Section

• Round

Flowering Stem Leaves

• Stem uniformly leafy

Main Stem Branches

• Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule

• Fibrous
• Tap Root

US State

• Texas
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Idaho
• Montana
• North Dakota
• New Mexico
• Nevada
• Oregon
• South Dakota
• Utah
• Washington
• Wyoming
• Nebraska

Canadian Province or Territory

• British Columbia
• Alberta
• Saskatchewan

• Common Weeds of the Canadian Prairies, 1963 (Cat# A53-1136-1) See page: 58
• Weeds and Poisonous Plants of Wyoming and Utah 1987 (ISBN 0-941570-06-1) See page: 26
• Weeds of California, 1970, State of California Publications and Documents. See page: 158
• Weeds of Colorado, 1990 Cooperative Extension, Colorado State Univ. Bulletin 521A, See page: 61
• Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 278
• Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 274
• Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 x
• Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X