Telegraphweed before it blooms looks a bit like a Rudbeckia, and they are related.
Common Name: Telegraphweed
Other Common Names: Silk-grass Goldenaster
Botanical Family: Asteraceae (The Aster Family)
Botanical Latin Name: Heterotheca grandiflora
Description & Habitat: Telegraphweed is an annual or biennial that is native to four southwestern states in the United States. Its endemic range is California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. This plant is commonly found along the roadside but also can be found in fields, pastures, and in places with disturbed soil. It is a member of the Aster family which means it has daisy-like flowers. Asters are grouped because they have a specific feature that unites them, what we think of as a single flower on them is actually a large cluster of smaller flowers. In the center of a daisy that is a tightly packed cluster of dozens or in some cases hundreds of actual flowers each with a separate ovary. Telegraphweed is interesting this regard because it’s ‘flowers; are a cheery yellow color and about a half-inch in diameter. The flowers can have anywhere from twenty to thirty petals and the florets right next to those petals are called ray florets. Those ray florets have the unique ability to produce a different type of seed than the florets in the center of the flower. The ones around the edge produce heavier seeds without a silk ‘parachute’ and fall near the parent plant but have a slower germination speed. Seeds from the center of the Telegraphweed’s flower have a tuft of fuzz which is called a pappus. This fuzz that allows the seeds to float away on the wind and they also germinate faster. The best way to identify this plant is to feel the leaves and then smell your fingers. The leaves will be fuzzy and a lot of the hairs on the leaves are glandular, they produce a sort of oil or resin that smells like Camphor or Creosote. This plant got the name ‘Telegraphweed’ because it started springing up along railroads and places where telegraph lines were being built. It’s narrow shape and then the wide clusters of flowers also somewhat resemble a telegraph pole, so the name makes sense.
When & What to Harvest: This plant does not have anything to harvest as it is not edible or medicinal.
Non-Dangerous Lookalikes: None are known
Related Dangerous Species: None are known.
Recipe: As far as I can tell this plant is not edible.
Additional Information: (If applicable)
https://naturecollective.org/plant-guide/details/telegraph-weed/
With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but my booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog. In addition to being able to process card payments we now take CashApp payments so your payment options for my product have tripled. With that said; if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.
For those of you wondering what plants are going to be at the market this weekend here is the list.
Fresh Foods:
Soup Kit – Parsnip
Soup Kit – Turnip
Garlic Bulbs
Soil Amendment Products:
Live Mushroom Compost – 18 Gallon Tote*
Live Mushroom Compost – 3 Gallon Bag
Live Mushroom Compost – 1 Gallon Bag
Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture Sample size
Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Lion’s Mane Tincture
Sandhills Mushroom Farms – Turkey Tail Tincture
House Plants for the Holidays:
Cuban Oregano, Large Leaf
Pothos, Cebu Blue
Swiss Cheese Plant
Sindbad Begonia
-more TBA-
*The 18 gallon tote is by special order only and is delivered to any address within the Fayetteville city area.
How to stay in Contact with Us!
Our group’s online presence has migrated to Nextdoor.com. All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.
Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville
Also please take a gander at the YouTube version of this blog:
The Videos: Look Here
>Newest videos (1): Tumeric
Meetings are still going on! Our next (unofficial) meeting is November 23rd at the Fayetteville City Market at 325 Franklin Street between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.
