SPANISH NEEDLES
File Size: 25 KB
 
Bidens bipinnata  L.
Cowley County, Kansas
Annual
Height: 1-5 feet
Family: Asteraceae - Sunflower Family
Flowering Period:   August, September,October
Stems: Erect, slender, branching above, 4-angled, glabrous to minutely bristled.
Leaves: Opposite, thin, pinnately divided 2 or 3 times, 1 to 6 inches long, 1/2 to 5 inches wide; stalk 1 to 2 inches long; leaflets ovate-lanceolate or oblong, toothed or lobed; tips tapering to points.
Inflorescences: Heads, few to many, single or in clusters of 2-3, about 1/4 inch across, terminal on slender stalks; outer bracts linear; inner bracts linear-lanceolate, slightly longer.
Flowers: Ray florets often 4 or fewer (sometimes no ray florets present), yellow, ligules less than 1/5 inch long; disk florets yellow.
Fruits: Achene, narrowly-linear, 4-angled, 1/2 to 3/4 inch long, dark brown to blackish, tapering to point, enclosing seed; pappus of 2-4 barbed awns, straw-colored.
Habitat: Partially shaded, damp disturbed or waste areas, gardens and cultivated fields; moist soils.
Distribution: East 4/5 of Kansas.
Forage Value: Pheasants and quail eat the seeds.
Uses: The leaves of young plants were used by Native Americans as a source of greens.
Comments: The common name refers to the barbed awns that will penetrate clothing and fur.

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