COCKLEBUR
Xanthium strumarium
SUNFLOWER FAMILY (Asteraceae)
Identification
- Flowering time - August, September
- Uncommon on floodplain at FF and NW
- Clusters of oval burs - green early, but turning brown later
- Large maple-like leaves
- Common burdock has similar burs, but they are round, not oval and it has pink flowers
This native annual, a rough-textured plant, up to several feet tall, has separate male and female flower heads on the same plant. The leaves are maple-like on long stems (A,D). Clusters of male and female flower heads rising from the leaf axils develop next to each other. The creamy white male flowers are on round heads at the tip of the cluster (B). The oval females develop below (B,C), maturing into elongated brown burs covered with stiff, hooked prickles (E).
Found near water, ditches and roads, flowering in August and September. Uncommon in floodplain roadside ditches at Fontenelle Forest and on the floodplain near the river at Neale Woods.
This plant is considered a weed in Nebraska. Plants contain a toxic chemical. Deaths have occurred among animals ingesting it. The burs are known by some as “porcupine eggs.”
The content of NatureSearch is provided by dedicated volunteer Naturalists of Fontenelle Forest who strive to provide the most accurate information available. Contributors of the images retain their copyrights. The point of contact for this page is: Roland Barth.