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Ontario Weeds: Canada fleabane

Author: OMAFRA Staff
Creation Date: 01 June 2002
Last Reviewed: 01 November 2003

 

Return to the Ontario Weeds Gallery

Excerpt from Publication 505, Ontario Weeds, Order this publication


Table of Contents

  1. Name
  2. Other Names
  3. Family
  4. General Description
  5. Stems and Leaves
  6. Flowers and Fruit
  7. Habitat
  8. Similar Species
  9. Related Links

Name: Canada fleabane, Erigeron canadensis L.,

Other Names: Bitterweed, Fleabane, Hogweed, Horseweed, Mare's-tail, vergerette du Canada, vergerolle du Canada, érigéron du Canada, queue de renard, Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronq.

Family: Composite or Aster Family (Compositae) 

General Description: Annual or winter annual, reproducing only by seed.

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Photos and Pictures

Canada fleabane.

Canada fleabane.

Canada fleabane. A. Base of plant. B. Top of flowering stem.

Canada fleabane. A. Base of plant. B. Top of flowering stem.

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Stems & Leaves: Stems, erect, 10-180cm (4in.-5ft) high, hairy, little branched; leaves alternate (1 per node) but numerous and often appearing opposite (2 per node), soft-hairy at first but becoming harsh on older leaves, bright green; basal and lower stem leaves narrowly oval, rarely more than 1cm (2/5in.) wide, tapering to a slender stalk, with a few, scattered, shallow teeth or without teeth; middle and upper leaves linear, very narrow and usually without teeth.

Flowers & Fruit: Flower heads 3-5mm (1/8-1/5in.) across, very numerous on many short branches near the top of the main stem; ray florets white but very short and usually concealed by the slightly longer involucral bracts around each flower head; disk florets yellowish; very fluffy at maturity. The leaves and other parts of the plant when crushed have a faint but distinctive odour reminiscent of carrots. Flowers from July to late autumn.

Habitat: Canada fleabane occurs throughout Ontario in grainfields, pastures, waste places, roadsides and gardens.

Similar Species: It is distinguished by its numerous, narrow, mostly toothless bright green leaves gradually decreasing in size from base to top of plant, its numerous, small, yellow-green flower heads lacking conspicuous ray florets, its odour suggestive of carrots, and its fluffy appearance when mature.

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Related Links

... on general Weed topics
... on weed identification, order OMAFRA Publication 505: Ontario Weeds
... on weed control, order OMAFRA Publication 75: Guide To Weed Control

 

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