Ontario Weeds: Shepherd's purse
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Excerpt from Publication 505, Ontario Weeds, Order this publication
Table of Contents
Scientific name:
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Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medic.,
Family:
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Mustard Family (Brassicaceae)
General Description:
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Annual or winter annual, reproducing only by seed.
Habitat:
Shepherd's-purse occurs throughout Ontario in grainfields, waste areas, roadsides, gardens and lawns.
Seedlings:
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Lobed basal leaves
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Hairy lobes
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Lobes or divisions are more or less uniform on each side
- Can produce over 33,000 seeds per plant
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Stems are erect
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Stems extend 10 - 60 cm (4 - 24 in.) high
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Stems are branched above or throughout
Leaves
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Grows from a rosette of lobed leaves at base
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Leafs are alternate (1 per node)
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The blades are very variable, oblong
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Leaf blades are 5 - 10 cm long
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Shallowly to deeply and coarsely toothed
Flowers & Fruit:
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Flowers are white and small
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Flowers produce seed pods which are heart-shaped
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Flowers from early spring to late fall
Often Confused With / Distinguishing Features
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It is distinguished from all of the other plants in the mustard family by having heart-shaped seedpods.
Herbicide Resistance
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No documented cases of herbicide resistance in Ontario to date. Shepherd's-purse is resistant to WSSA Group 2 herbicides in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Photos and Pictures
Figure 1: Shepherd's purse seedling
Figure 2: Star-shaped hairs on the leaf surface of Shepherd's purse
Figure 3: Shepherd's purse mature plant
Figure 4: Heart shaped seedpod of Shepherd's purse
Figure 5: Orange-yellow seeds within the seedpod
References
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General Weed topics
For more information:
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E-mail: ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca