Weed Information: Tragopogon dubius (salsify, western)
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Tragopogon dubius (salsify, western)

Family: Asteraceae

Description

This genus has several species with yellow or purple flowers. They go by a variety of common names, including salsify, goatsbeard, oyster-root, and vegetable-oyster. The last two refer to the large, edible, white taproot which supposedly tastes like oysters and was the reason the plant was imported. Its long, narrow leaves are often mistaken for grass but can easily be distinguished by the milky juice.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Yellow
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Cyme (simple or branched)
  • Head
  • Solitary, terminal
Number of Petals
  • 5 petals
  • more than 10 petals
Petal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United > 75% of length
Petal Tip
  • Square
  • Toothed
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)
  • 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)
  • 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)
  • 5.0 cm (2.0 inches)
  • > 5.0 cm (> 2.0 inches)
Number of Sepals
  • sepals lacking
  • 8 sepals
  • 9 sepals
  • 10 sepals
  • 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
  • 2.5 cm (1.0 inch)
  • 3.0 cm (1.2 inches)
  • 3.5 cm (1.4 inches)
  • 4.0 cm (1.6 inches)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Simple (including lobed leaves)
Stipules
  • Lacking
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Parallel
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole absent (leaf sessile)
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)
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 1 - 5 mm (.04 - .20 inch)
  • 5 - 10 mm (.20 - .40 inch)
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)
  • Linear or filiform
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Entire
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Clasping
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Acute
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Floccose
  • Glabrous (NO hairs)
Succulence
  • Not succulent

Milky Juice
  • Juice milky
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Not aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Biennial
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Erect, columnar (narrow)
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
  • 4 - 6 dm (1.3 - 2.0 feet)
  • 6 - 8 dm (2.0 - 2.6 feet)
  • 8 - 10 dm (2.6 - 3.3 feet)
Wind Dissemination
  • Fruit, seed, or spore wind borne
Moisture Regime
  • Mesic
  • Arid
Chlorophyll
  • Present

Stem Cross Section
  • Hollow (flowering stem at maturity)
  • 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
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Massachusetts
  • Maine
  • Michigan
  • Missouri
  • North Carolina
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • West Virginia
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Iowa
  • Idaho
  • Minnesota
  • Montana
  • North Dakota
  • New Mexico
  • Nevada
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • South Dakota
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Nebraska
Canadian Province or Territory
  • British Columbia
  • New Brunswick
  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • Quebec
  • Alberta
  • Manitoba
  • Newfoundland
  • Saskatchewan
  • Yukon
  • Northwest Territory
Other
  • District of Columbia

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  • California Growers Weed Identification Handbook, 1968 - 1998 University of California Publication # 4030-1, See page: 220
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  • More Turfgrass and Related Weeds: Beyond the Color Atlas, 2011 Clemson University Publishing ISBN# 978-0-9798777-5-9 See Page: 198
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  • Northwest Weeds, 1990 (ISBN 0-87842-249-8) See page: 161
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  • Weeds and Poisonous Plants of Wyoming and Utah 1987 (ISBN 0-941570-06-1) See page: 216
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  • Weeds of Canada, 1970 Canada Dept. of Ag., Pub. # 948, See page: 198
  • Weeds of Colorado, 1990 Cooperative Extension, Colorado State Univ. Bulletin 521A, See page: 180
  • Weeds of Kentucky and Adjacent States, 1991 (ISBN 0-8131-1743-7) See page: 108
  • Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 178
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 130
  • Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 238
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 164
  • Weeds of the Northern United States and Canada, 1964 Montgomery See page: 203
  • Weeds of the Northern U.S, and Canada, 1999 Royer and Dickinson, (ISBN# 1-55105-221-0) See page: 62 - 63
  • Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 111
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  • Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 190
  • Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 190
  • Weeds of Utah, 1971 UAES Special Report 21, See page: 108
  • 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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