Common groundsel
June 9, 2015
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EmailSenecio vulgaris L. Asteraceae (Aster family)
Life cycle
Summer or winter annual capable of multiple generations per year.
Common groundsel plant.
Leaves
Alternate, sparsely hairy to smooth with variable leaf shape. Young leaf margins may be smooth to slightly wavy; older leaves have deep, irregular lobes and coarsely toothed margins. Lower leaves have short stalks; upper leaves are stalkless.
Common groundsel seedling.
Stems
Smooth, erect and multiple-branched. Usually no taller than 12 inches.
Flowers and fruit
Numerous yellow, cylindrical- to cone-shaped flower heads are produced in clusters at the stem ends. The seed is enclosed in a single-seeded, wind-disseminated fruit that forms in a white, approximately 0.5-inch-wide puffball collection.
Common groundsel flower head.
Reproduction
Seeds.
Mature seedhead of common groundsel.
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