Weed Information: Urtica dioica (nettle, stinging)
Back to Plant List

Urtica dioica (nettle, stinging)

Family: Urticaceae

Description

The name `urtica` is the same root word as the medical term for hives (urticaria), which refers to the skin reaction caused by contact with this plant. The stiff hairs on the stem contain a small drop of formic acid which is extremely irritating to the skin, but the irritation is short lived. The young growth of the plant is an excellent cooked green (much like spinach), and the older stems have historically been used as a fiber source for ropes and clothing.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Green
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Panicle
Number of Petals
  • 0 (no petals)
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers regular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • < 1 mm (< .04 inch)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • < 1 mm (< .04 inch)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • 4 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • United at base < 25% length
Sepal Tip
  • Pointed
  • Rounded
Flower Sex
  • Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)
Number of Styles
  • Styles lacking (male flowers only)
  • 1 style
Number of Stamens
  • stamens lacking (female flowers only)
  • 4 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)
  • 1 carpel
Ovary Position
  • Superior (hypogynous)
Fruit Type
  • Achene
Fruit Length at Maturity
  • 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Opposite
Leaf Type
  • Simple (including lobed leaves)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous 4-10 mm (.16 - .40 in) long
  • Foliaceous > 1 cm (> .40 inch) long
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Palmate
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)
Leaf Width
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
  • 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
  • Dentate
  • Serrate
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acute (cuneate)
  • Cordate
  • Rounded
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Acute
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Hispid or setose
  • Pubescent
  • Sericeous or villous (silky)
  • Stinging hairs
  • Villous or sericious (silky)
Succulence
  • Not succulent

Milky Juice
  • Juice NOT milky (watery)
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Perennial
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Erect, columnar (narrow)
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 6 - 8 dm (2.0 - 2.6 feet)
  • 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)
Wind Dissemination
  • Not wind disseminated
Moisture Regime
  • Seasonally saturated
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

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

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Fibrous
  • Rhizomatous

US State
  • Alabama
  • 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
  • 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
  • Prince Edward Island
  • Quebec
  • Alberta
  • Manitoba
  • Newfoundland
  • Saskatchewan
  • Yukon
  • Northwest Territory
Other
  • District of Columbia
  • St. Pierre and Miquelon
  • Labrador
  • Greenland

  • The Biology of Canadian Weeds: Canadian Journal of Plant Science Vol:57Pg.491
  • California Growers Weed Identification Handbook, 1968 - 1998 University of California Publication # 4030-1, See page: 187
  • Common Weeds of Canada, Mulligan 1987 (ISBN 0-910053-59-9) See page: 21
  • Common Weeds of the Canadian Prairies, 1963 (Cat# A53-1136-1) See page: 64
  • Common Weeds of the United States, 1971 (ISBN 0-486-20504-5) See page: 110
  • Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 16
  • Garden Weeds of Southern California, 1981, See page: 22
  • Gilkey`s Weeds of the Pacific Northwest, 1980 (ISBN 0-88246-039-0) See page: 67
  • How to Know the Weeds, 1972, (ISBN# 0-697-04880-2) See page: 52
  • Manual of Ohio Weeds, 1931 Ohio Ag. Exp. Station Bull. # 475, See page: 67
  • Nebraska Weeds, 1979 Nebraska Dept. of Ag., Lincoln NE, See page: 41
  • Northwest Weeds, 1990 (ISBN 0-87842-249-8) See page: 85
  • Selected Weeds of Oregon, 1985 and 1989 Supplement (s) Oregon State Dept. of Agriculture, See page: 18
  • South Dakota Weeds, 1967 South Dakota State University, See page: 68
  • South Dakota Weeds 2002 South Dakota Dept. of Ag. 523 E. Capitol, Foss Bldg. Pierre, South Dakota 57501 See page: 65
  • Weed Seeds of the Great Plains, 1993 University of Kansas# 92-125-B ISBN# 0-7006-0651-3 See index #: 6
  • Weeds, 1955 (1980) Walter Conrad Muenscher, ISBN# 0-8014-1266-8 See page: 162
  • Weeds and Poisonous Plants of Wyoming and Utah 1987 (ISBN 0-941570-06-1) See page: 8
  • Weeds of Alberta, 1983 Alberta Environmental Centre Agdex 640-4, See page: 127
  • Weeds of California, 1970, State of California Publications and Documents. See page: 128
  • Weeds of California and other Western States, 2007 (ISBN 13: 978-1-879906-69-3) See Page: 1562
  • Weeds of Colorado, 1990 Cooperative Extension, Colorado State Univ. Bulletin 521A, See page: 53
  • Weeds of Eastern Washington and Adjacent Areas, 1972 (LOC 72-83635) See page: 72
  • Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains, 1994 (ISBN 0939870-00-4) See page: 536
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 303
  • Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 48
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1956, Univ. of Delaware Field Manual #1 See species #: 208
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 320
  • Weeds of the Northern U.S, and Canada, 1999 Royer and Dickinson, (ISBN# 1-55105-221-0) See page: 374 - 375
  • Weeds of the West, 1992 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 588
  • Weeds of the West, 2000 (ISBN 0941570-13-4) See page: 584
  • Weeds of Utah, 1971 UAES Special Report 21, See page: 23
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 X
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds X
Back to Plant List