Weed ID

MEADOW HAWKWEED COMPLEX

Asteraceae or Sunflower Family
Hieracium pratense, H. floribundum, H. piloselloides

GROWTH HABIT: Creeping perennials that contain a milky sap.

LEAVES: Basal rosettes have hairy, narrow, spatula-shaped leaves that are dark green above and light green below.

STEMS: One rosette can produce 10 to 25 flowering stems that can grow up to 3 feet tall. Stems have short, stiff hairs, and may have one to three small, clasping leaves below the midpoint of the stem.

FLOWERS: Five to thirty bright yellow, dandelion-like flowers make up the inflorescence. Flowers by mid-June and seeds by early August.

ROOTS: Shallow, fibrous, and creeping. One flowering plant can produce 4 to 12 leafy stolons that can reach a length of 4 to 12 inches. Vigorous stolon growth quickly expands the colony, forming dense patches that can have as many as 3,200 plants per square yard.

SEEDS: Viable up to 7 years.

REPRODUCES: By seeds, rhizomes, stolons, and adventitious root buds. Reproduces asexually.

HABITAT: Moist pastures, forest meadows, abandoned fields, clearcuts, and roadsides.

"This weed's habitat extends way beyond meadows"