Bermuda Grass

Bermuda Grass; Cynodon dactylon; going by any number of names, some of them repeatable, Bermuda Grass is an invasive that is as difficult to grow as it is to eradicate.  It is marked by a sprawling, low growing mass of tough rhizomes with densely spaced thin, short leaves, and short flower spikes with a single joint, that divides into 4 sprigs of tiny flowers.  Originally from somewhere in Africa, it is drought resistant, has a deep, dense root system, and wears well, taking over many places, such as Bermuda, from whence it was brought to the USA.  Favored for ball fields, it provides a dense sod if watered consistently, but goes dormant in the winter, turning brown and quickly wearing down to the rhizomes.  It transplants as easily from rhizomes, so must be disposed of properly if it is unwanted.  It does not tolerate shade, so is not a good choice for lawns with trees.

Bermuda Grass habit; a low growing grass marked by spreading rhizomes lined with thin, short, pointed leaves, nodes that take root where they touch the ground, and short flower spikes that branch into four flower bearing sprigs.

Note; the four identical sprigs on each flower spike, lined with tiny flowers

Note; the creeping radial pattern, rhizomes taking root wherever they touch soil, quickly growing over exposed soil

Foxtail Grass

Foxtail Grass; Setaria viridis (Green Foxtail/Bristlegrass); a short to mid-sized annual bunch-grass that produces clumps of thin, jointed stems lined with wide, relatively short blades, producing spikes of very fuzzy looking, dense seed-heads.  This species was introduced from Europe, and is closely related to finger millet, as can be guessed from the rounded seeds and the short beard hairs that protect the spikes from birds.  It is too short, and lacks the deep roots to compete with native grasses, but readily colonizes disturbed ground or open soil.  The seeds are readily consumed by birds, if they can get to them without the beards poking them in the eyes.  The wide, soft green blades, and the fluffy seed heads make this grass a fun looking plant.

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Green Foxtail Grass habit; a medium height bunch grass with short, wide, soft green blades that produces fluffy spikes of round seeds that droop.

Note; tight bunches of stems produce a brush of bristly seed heads

Vervain, Wright’s Vervain

Wright’s Vervain Verbena wrightii. A low growing, sprawling perennial consisting of tough stems radiating outward from a central tap root.  Opposite leaves are divided into three deeply pinnate lobes, which are wider than those of V hasata, Blue Vervain.  Thick, bushy, terminal spikes form a cone-shaped, tight cluster, or head, of light lavender-blue tube flowers.  Many flowers are open at the same time, creating a ring of lavender around the head, with green, unopened buds at the top.  The tubes are completely concealed in bracts, opening up to a corolla of 5 cleft petals, the bottom ‘lip’ petal being longer, and more deeply cleft.  This vervain prefers full sun, so is not found in shaded or forested areas, but is common everywhere else, specifically prairies, mowed areas, and west facing forest margins, where it forms dense clumps of bright blue flowers.  A favorite of butterflies and bees, Wright’s Vervain blooms early, goes dormant during summer heat, and resumes blooming in cooler fall weather.  PDU, CC (372) 4/2/15 – ; 3/10/16; 3/12/17- ; 3/22/18; 3/23/19; 3/25/20

Wrights Vervain habit; dense clumps of sprawling stems radiating out from a central root bearing dense heads of bright lavender blue flowers

Note; deeply pinnate, three lobed, narrow leaves are arranged in opposite pairs along smooth stems

Note; terminal spikes form thick flower heads of bracts from which the lavender blue tube flowers emerge.

Note; tube flowers open to a corolla of 5 petals, the lip petal being longer, and cleft into two lobes

 

Thistle, Yellow Star Thistle

Yellow Star Thistle Centaurea solstitialis. More like a cactus than a thistle, this sprawling, lanky, readily branching plant has pithy, flattened, winged stems which branch in asymmetric patterns, forming a messy looking mass of spines. The long, stiff, very narrow, dusty green leaves are arranged alternately at irregularly spaced nodes, each leaf tipped with cactus like spines.  Stems potentially branch at each node, creating a tumbling habit. The flower heads are bright yellow globes that sprout from fleshy, fruit-like pedicles 3-4” long which are covered in thorns.  Common on disturbed soils, roadsides, otherwise the plant is soon crowded out by grasses and taller plants. (Pl Rn X Old Clark) (218) 6/25/15; 6/15/16- ; 6/10/17- ; 6/7/18 ; 19 not recrd;

Yellow Star Thistle habit; an irregular mass of sprawling, pithy, flattened, winged stems armed with cactus like spines, bearing yellow, globe like flowers on fleshy pedicles

Note; flattened, ‘winged stems’ and grey-green color

Note; tumbling, readily branching growth habit produces mounds of weakly upright stems, thorns and leaves

Note; bright yellow globe flower on a fleshy, fruit-like pedicle, with inch long cactus like thorns.

Thistle, Texas Thistle

Texas Thistle Cirsium texanum.  A lanky thistle with long, ribbed, pithy stems, and dusty green, deeply pinnate leaves lined with only 4-5 spines per side of leaf.  This is the most common thistle on the ILC.  Rising from one pithy tap root, the main stem soon branches into multiple stems which are slightly grooved, but lack spines, like Nodding Thistle (C nutans).  Branching does not follow a symmetric pattern, and each long (6-10”) flower stalk bears only one elongated, slightly tapering flower-head, lined with prickly scales.    The lavender to rose-purple, hair-like petals are longer than Bull Thistle.  Not as robust or squat as Bull Thistle, Texas Thistle has shorter spines, does not have as sharp or thick of spines on stems, has much longer flower stalks, lacks spines on flower stalks, is a lighter lavender color, has longer hair-like petals, and has longer, more tapered buds.  However, it is only slightly less noxious.  (332) 4/28/15; 5/1/16, 4/17/17- ; 5/4/18; 4/28/19; 4/25/20

Texas Thistle habit; a lanky, readily branching annual with alternating, pinnate leaves bearing multiple, smooth flower stems, each capped with a single, lavender head of thread like petals on a tapering, scaly bud.

Note; lavender to rose globe flowers have longer filaments than Bull Thistle or Nodding Thistle

Note; prickly scales lining the elongated buds

Note; thin, pinnate leaves with only a few, short spines on each leaf are arranged in an alternating spiral around slightly grooved flower stems

Note; flower stems are smooth, lacking spines, like those of Nodding or Bull Thistle

Spiny Sow Thistle

Spiny Sow Thistle Sonchus asper. An early (April) blooming annual, Sow Thistles begin as rosettes of deeply cut, thistle like leaves which look spiny, but are soft and harmless.  Leaves bleed a slightly bitter, but harmless milky sap when cut. The pinnate, clasping leaves, which have deep, rounded sinuses, are arranged in an alternating spiral around smooth, hollow stems.  The rosette of leaves stays low as long as the weather is cold, but quickly grows up when it warms, culminating in a compact clump of small, short lived, green buds, invariably coated with a white powder.  Stems can be trampled down, but continue to grow, arching back up and producing flowers.  Yellow ray flowers emerge from the tapering buds.  If cut back, the hollow stem quickly sends out new stalks.  The ray petals are squared at the ends, surrounding a yellow disk flower fuzzy with yellow anthers.  Flowers transform into coarse blow-balls of wind- blown achenes, and the plants wither soon after the plant goes to seed.  Common along partially shaded paths.  (222) 3/25/15-5/20/15; 3/10/16; 2/25/17- ; 2/8/19 – ; 20 not recrd;

Spiny Sow Thistle; A soft plant with hollow stems and leaves which look spiny but are soft and harmless, bearing compact bunches of tapering buds that open to yellow ray flowers.

Note; pinnate, thistle like leaves with deep, rounded sinuses, look spiny but are soft and harmless

Note; leaves clasp the otherwise smooth, hollow stems

Note; plants end in a tight bunch of tapering buds, invariably coated with a grey powder

Note; flowers convert to blowball achenes

Note; tapering buds

 

Thistle, Nodding Thistle

Nodding Thistle Carduus nutans.  Like Bull Thistle, all of this noxious invader of disturbed soil is covered in sharp spines.  Unlike C vulgare, Nodding Thistle has multiple, long stems, and unique to Nodding Thistle, each head is framed by a thick rosette of sharp, triangular bracts, and the open heads “nod” (bent sharply downward) to one side by as much as 90 degrees.  Rose to purple flower heads otherwise resemble Bull thistle.  Like Texas Thistle, this plant divides into multiple, long flower stems, each bearing a single flower head, except that C texanum has smooth ribbed stems, lacking thorns.  Like other thistles, flowers convert to fluffy blow-balls of wind carried achenes, which birds like finches tear apart in search of the nutritious seeds.  Not common locally.  (not in book) 4/20/15; 16, 17, 18, 19 no obs, 5/28/20;

Nodding Thistle habit; a very spiny thistle with relatively small leaves and narrow stems, most notable by the long, spiny flower stems, and the sharp, rosette of bracts that from the rose-red flowers

Note; relatively small, pinnate leaves with sharp spines on every leaflet.

Note; the large, sharp, triangular bracts that frame the flower head

Note; all parts of the plant are covered in sharp spines

Note; the long, spiny flower stems

Note; large heads of hairlike, red-purple petals, nodding to one side on long stems.

Note; the rosette of sharp, triangular bracts that frame the flower heads

Thistle, Bull Thistle

Bull Thistle Cirsium vulgare. An invasive pest, this thick stemmed weed has sharp, stiff spines on every part of the plant; stalks, leaf margins, buds and stems included.  The plant begins as a rosette of deeply pinnate, dark green, wavy leaves with sharp, stiff spines on every lobe, which rises from an underground, corm like root.  As the flower stem grows, the thick, pithy stalk is sheathed in ridges that have spines, with leaves arranged in an alternating spiral. “Bull” comments on the stout, thick-stemmed growth habit, vulgare comments on its ubiquity, the “common thistle”.  Each undivided stalk produces a dense cluster of squat, tapering flower-heads that take on a bowl shape as they open, a dense tuft of short, dark red-purple, hair like petals pushing its way out of the bud.  Bull Thistle does not branch, unlike Nodding and Texas Thistles, unless the main stem is cut, in which case the plant will bud several side stalks.  Black honey bees and small black and grey beetles, which can often be found wallowing in the flower heads, pollinate the flowers, which convert to heads of achenes.  Finches each the seeds, tearing the seed apart in the process.  Otherwise, achenes are carried off by the wind.  (332) 4/20/15; 5/10/16; 4/17/17- ; 5/4/18; 19 no obs; 20 no obs

Bull Thistle habit; a squat, thick stemmed plant with grey-green, undulating, thorny leaves, bearing a dense terminal cluster of rose-red, hair like flower heads

Note; dark green, clasping, pinnate leaves, with a sharp thorn on the tip of every projection, arranged in an alternating spiral

Note, every surface of the plant has sharp spines, flower stems included

 

Sunflower, Kansas Sunflower

Kansas Sunflower Helianthus annuus. A very tall (4-7’), pithy-stemmed, branching annual with coarse bristles on all parts of the plant.  Sunflowers, unlike daisies, have only one stalk per plant.  The large (4-10”) heart-shaped leaves are dull green, born alternately along the stalk in an open spiral, droop slightly.  Unlike commercial sunflowers, Kansas Sunflowers produce a loose, branching terminal and axillary flower sprays.  The large (4-6”) flower-heads (larger on the terminal sprays) sport flat, yellow, pointed ray flowers nearly 2” long arranged around a disk comprised of tiny reddish flowers.  The larger, terminal flowers emerge first, then those budding from leaf axils.  The seeds are embedded in the disk, appearing as a composite spiral.  Common in disturbed soils (198) 5/20/15; 6/1/16- ; 5/20/17- ; 5/28/18; 19 not recrd; 5/20/20;

Kansas Sunflower habit; tall, thick stemmed plant with heart shaped, alternate leaves, and loose terminal and axillary sprays of large, showy, bright yellow ray flowers.

Note; all parts of the plant covered in bristle like hairs.

Note; large, heart shaped leaves are arranged around the stem in a loose, alternating spiral

Note; flowers comprise a ring of large, pointed ray flowers around a disk of tiny reddish flowers

Note; ray petals, with 4 or 5 linear veins, end in pointed tips

Note; seeds are embedded in the brown disk in a spiral pattern

Note; flowers born singly on a loose spray,

Sunflower, Engelmann’s Sunflower

Engelmann’s Sunflower/Daisy Engelmannia pinnatifida. A perennial that looks like a small sunflower, this daisy, which begins as a rosette of hairy, deeply pinnate leaves, produces multiple, branching stalks, the leaves alternating up the stems. Slender, branching flower sprays produce bright yellow ray flowers 1”-1 1/4” across, surrounding a central, green disk.  From the disk bud 20 or so yellow disk flowers, each with projecting anthers.  The 8 ray petals have linear veins, ending with three teeth, which curve back in the heat, or as they age throughout the long blooming season. Disks produce a seed capsule with a central spike, not an open head, like sunflowers. The loose panicles of flowers become bushy as the plant ages.  An invasive of disturbed soils, this flower is crowded out by perennial vegetation, unless the area is mowed down.  Most common along road sides, trail margins, and lawns.  (202) 4/6/15-; 3/27/16; 3/13/17- ; 3/26/18 – 6/15/18; 3/25/19; 3/25/20

Engelmann’s Sunflower habit; long deeply pinnate leaves on a clump of hairy, branching stems, with an open panicle of bright yellow ray flowers

Note; basal rosette of large, deeply pinnate, fuzzy leaves, arranged on stalks in an alternating spiral

Note; loose sprays of 8 petal ray flowers, each petal ending in a toothed tip, surrounding a yellow disk

Note; 8 ray petals, each with several deep veins, surrounding a green disk with embedded yellow disk flowers.

Note; petals curve back in the heat, or with age