Go to Midwest Weeds and Wildflowers Home Page
Low Cudweed, Marsh Cudweed
Gnaphalium uliginosum L.
Asteraceae (Sunflower Family)
▲ plant initiating flowering
▲▼ mature flowering plant
Gnaphalium uliginosum
L., Low Cudweed, Marsh Cudweed:
(Bayer Code:
GNAUL; US Code GNUL)
·
European-native, summer or winter annual with white-wooly stems and leaves;
grows 2-12 inches tall, with branched stems, particularly as flowering commences
·
Leaves are linear-lanceolate or oblanceolate, greenish-white to gray-green,
covered with white hairs; upper stem leaves are smaller than basal leaves
· Head inflorescences are about 1/8 inch diameter, egg-shaped and greenish-brown, in axils of upper stem leaves; disk flowers are tiny and non-descript, and ray flowers are absent; flowers from mid-summer to early fall
·
Bracts around head are oval, in several rows, and greenish-brown in color, with
some long hairs present
· Prefers moist soils; found in low-maintenance turf, riparian areas, landscapes, cultivated areas ; can tolerate moderate shade
·
Can distinguish from Purple
Cudweed (Gamochaeta purpurea)
which has mostly unbranched stems, flowers in early to mid-spring, and it has
larger, wider leaves