I'm told this is stinging nettle...

Discussion in 'Plants: Identification' started by oregon1, Jul 13, 2007.

  1. oregon1

    oregon1 Member

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    I dug it up in sandy soil near Portland, Oregon about 4 months ago. It was just 4 or 5 leaves about 2 inches high. Touching the leaves does indeed give you a nasty skin irritation that lasts about a day.

    Thanks in advance...
     

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  2. tipularia

    tipularia Well-Known Member 10 Years

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  3. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Agree with Verbascum thapsus (Great Mullein). You are unlucky to be allergic to it, most people don't have any problem handling it.
     
  4. oregon1

    oregon1 Member

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    Thanks both of you. I looked it up, wouldn't you know I picked an invasive species for a house plant. It really surprised me when it sprouted up, I just dug it out of a sandy riverbank amidst hundreds of other identical ones, but I read it was a biannual that doesn't shoot up until its second year.

    The thorny stalks next to it are blackberry (another real pest here in Oregon) but they thrived for a few months and then died, don't know why.
     
  5. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    If you get rid of it before the seeds ripen, you won't have any problems with it re-appearing.
     

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