American burnweed - Erechtites hieraciifolius

American burnweed plant before flowers are produced. Leaves are green with toothed edges.

American burnweed - Erechtites hieraciifolius

American burnweed - Erechtites hieraciifolius

Asteraceae family

MI Status

Native

Life cycle

Annual

Leaves

Up to 8 inches long and a few inches wide. Leaves are shallow to deeply lobed with toothed edges that clasp the stem with no discernible petiole.

Stems

Round and unbranched with vertical ridges, smooth or with sparse spreading hairs.

Flowers and fruit

The green flower head is an inch long. Flowers never appear to open. At the end of the green sepals are short white-to-yellow disk flowers that only slightly emerge for pollination (no showy ray flowers). After pollination and seed development, tufts of white hair emerge, like dandelion tufts, to carry the brown seeds on the wind.

Reproduction

Seeds

American burnweed leaf with toothed edges — American burnweed leaf

American burnweed seed on plant. Wind dispersed achenes attached to silvery, dandelion-like hairs. — American burnweed seed

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Plant & Pest Diagnostics