ANNUAL ERIOGONUM
File Size: 105 KB
 
Eriogonum annuum  Nutt.
Russell County, Kansas
Annual
Height: 4-40 inches
Family: Polygonaceae - Buckwheat Family
Flowering Period:   July, August, September
Also Called: Umbrella plant.
Stems: Erect, 1 to few, unbranched to ascending-branched, silver gray fuzzy-hairy.
Leaves: Alternate, numerous below, very few above, short-stalked, oblanceolate, 1 to 3.5 inches long, less than .5 inch wide, densely woolly, 1 prominent vein; margins entire, often curling under; tips pointed or blunt; basal leaves frequently wither before flowering.
Inflorescences: Cymes, open, flattened on top, terminal or terminating branches.
Flowers: Involucres calyx-like, top-shaped, upright, less than 1/8 inch long, shallow-toothed; perianths tiny, white to occasionally pinkish, drying reddish brown, rising above edge of involucres, densely hairy inside, glabrous outside; perianth members 6, petal-like, in 2 series, united at bases; stamens 9.
Fruits: Achenes, glabrous, pointed, 1-seeded; seeds small.
Habitat: Dry, open, prairie slopes, waste areas, overgrazed pastures, and roadsides, on sandy or rocky soils.
Distribution: West 3/4 of Kansas.
Forage Value: Livestock rarely eat annual eriogonum. It offers no forage value for cattle and only fair value for sheep and deer.
Uses: Native Americans boiled the plant and used the resulting liquid as a lotion to treat ant bites and mouth sores. They sometimes rubbed the fresh leaves on bison and deer hides to help tan them.
Comments: The sparse foliage and dense hairs of annual eriogonum help it tolerate droughts.

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