prostrate pigweed
Family
AmaranthaceaeScientific Name
Amaranthus albus
Other Common Names:
tumble pigweed
tumbleweed
white pigweed
Synonyms (former Scientific Names):
Amaranthus pubescens
Amaranthus graecizans var. pubescens
Habit
This erect summer annual flowers from June through October. The seeds germinate from April through September.
Leaves
The egg shaped leaves grow on short petioles, and grow from 1/2 to 1 inch in length. The leaves are generally hairless. The hairless, highly branched stem grows up to 3 feet in height, creating a globular shaped plant.
Identifying Characteristics
This plant can be found in piles against fences when broken loose by heavy winds.
Flower Seed Head
The greenish flowers occur in small auxiliary clusters on rigid bracts, twice the length of the flowers.
Seed Fruit
The small, black, lens shaped seeds are contained in a small bladder like hull. Each seed grows up to 1/16 of an inch in diameter.
Where Found
This plant can be found in cultivated and fallow lands.
Growth Habit
prostrate and nonwoody
Thorns or Spines
not present
Approximate Flower Diameter
pencil
Dominant Flower Color
purple
Flower Symmetry
radial symmetery
Leaf Hairs
no hairs
Leaf Shape
oval
Leaf Arrangement
Varies:
alternate,
opposite
Leaf Margin
entire
Leaf Structure
simple
Leaf Stalk
shorter than leaf
Stem Hairs
no hairs
Stem Cross Section
round or oval
Milky Sap
not present
Root Structure
taproot
Life Cycle
summer annual
Ochrea
present
Plant Type
Herb