Plant Identification Reviewing Some of the Common Plants Found on the SMSL - SM South HS Environmental Science I – Fall 08-09

The Grasses From

Foxtail (Setaria sp.)  Flower head a series of dense spikes.  Head floppy, drupes easily like a “fox tail”.

From From

Side Oats Grama (Bouteloua curtipendula)  Its spikelets have an oat-like resemblance  Spikelets Appear to come off one side of the panicle branch.  inches tall. From

Spikelets

From

Purpletop (Tridens flavus)  Its inflorescence is purple.  It has four to seven florets per spikelet.  2 to 5 feet tall  From

Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii )  Can be quite tall. (2 to 6 feet)  One of the big grasses on the prairie.  Inflorescence often resembles a turkey foot.  The base of the plant is typically hairy From

Turkey Foot

From

Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans )  Inflorescence looks like a big paint brush.  The leaves are broad with a blue-green color.  One of the big grasses on the prairie. From

 The ligules/auricles take on the appearance of rabbit ears, Paint Brush From

Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)  20 to 60 inches tall.  Greenish-blue to purplish.  Branching above, leafy base.  Inflorescence form wind blown seed tufts. From

InflorescenceSpikelets From

Broadleaf & Herbaceous Plants

Mullien (Verbascum thapsus)  feet tall.  Single erect stem  Leaves large and covered by fine soft hairs. Wooly  “Natures Toilet Paper”  Leaves form rosette at base and up stem  Long flower spike at top of stem  Yellow flowers

Wing Stem  Wings on sides of stems.  Yellow flowers.  Tall plants.  One stalk that branches at top.  Narrow, rough leaves up to 6 inches long.

Golden Rod (Solidago sp.)  Flowers yellow  Inflorescence usually wider than it is tall, with numerous tiny flowering heads on the upper side of curving branches.  Stem is green to Reddish- green, single or clustered, usually erect.  Leaves lanceolate, 2 to 5 inches long From

From epod.usra.edu From

Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans )  3-leaflets.  Petiole often reddish.  Leaflets kind of triangular with side notch.  “If it’s 3 let it be”

Note the Red Petiole White Berries

Ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia)  Leaves finely divided.  Green flower buds at end of stems.  Inconspicuous flowers.  Find in sunny areas.

Cattail (Typha latifolia)  Leaves are large spear-shaped.  Stalks are topped with hotdog-shaped, dark brown flower tuff which turns into fluff in the fall  Grows at edge of pond in thick stands.

From

Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)  Grows up to six feet tall.  Has large, broad leaves, usually four to ten inches long.  Flowers are often droop.  Flowers are pinkish- purple clusters which often droop.  Fruits are large green pods which turn brown before bursting open to let out fluffy seeds.  Sap is milky white. From

Flowers in the spring

Tick Trefoil (Desmodium canescens)  3 leaflets.  Small plant.  Purple flowers  Found in sunny areas

From

Thistle  Leaves with sharp spines or prickles on the margins.  Their prickles often occur all over the plant, including on the stem and flat parts of the leaf.  Purple flowers. From

Butterflies love thistle.

Ironweed (Vernonia sp.)  Narrow leaves.  Central stalk, branches at the top.  Purple flowers.  Stem very tough, hard to cut. From

Horse Nettle (Solanum carolinense)  Prickly stems and leaves.  Yellow fruit that resembles little tomatoes. But poisonous.  White flowers with yellow stamens. From

From From

Joe-pye Weed (Eupatorium altissimum)  Also known as Tall Boneset.  feet tall.  Flowers white.  Leaves attach to stem oppositely.  The plant has a gray- green coloration due to the fine hairs on the stem and leaves. From

Forest Dwelling Woody Plants

Buck Brush  Thin branches  Leaves in Opposite pairs.  Little bunches of berries at base of leaves in the fall.

Goose Berry (Ribes sp.)  Leaves look like little maple leaves but more divided  Branches covered with sharp spines.  Green fruits form on underside of branches.

From

Vines

Grape (Vinca sp.)  Leaves large and heart shaped with three points.  Often growing high in trees and over shrubs.  Green fruits in late summer and fall, turning purple as ripen. From

Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)  5-leaflets per leaflets instead of three.  Toothy edges to leaflets.  Bottom of each leaflet is often wedge-shaped.  Leaflets may taper abruptly into a short blunt tip,

Which is which? Poison IvyVirginia Creeper

Trumpet Creeper (Campsis radicans)  Large leaves with toothy leaflets 3–10 cm long.  Emerald green when new, maturing into a dark green.  The flowers orange to red in color, trumpet shaped.  The plant as a whole may grow to 10 meters in height.  The flowers are very attractive to hummingbirds. From

From

Some useful websites  KSU Wildflower Visual Collection  Missouri Wildflower Guide