Hairy Whitetop Impact: Crowds out native species Hairy Whitetop is a common weed species on alkaline soils, but is not restricted to them. It forms dense patches that can completely dominate sites, restricting the growth of other species or degrading pastures. The species is not toxic to livestock but they will not graze it either. • Origin: Eurasia • Flowering Dates: April-May • Reproduction: Rhizomes and Seeds • Height: Usually 1-1.5 ft. • Flower: White, 4 petals, spatulate, pedicels slender, spreading ascending; clawed, diagonal to the septals forming a cross • Seed: Oval to globe-shaped seed, beaked, purplish, rough • Underground: Rhizomes, creeping extending horizontally and vertically
• History: Native to the former USSR, and Afghanistan, Iran,
and various other countries in Asia. It most likely entered the country in contaminated alfalfa seed. The plant has also been called (Hairy Whitetop or Hoary Cress).
|