This is growing all over my pasture. I used to know what it is called, but can't recall! It has leaves that look almost identical to Marijuana, but the plant only grows about 6"-8" tall and has 3-4 nickel sized yellow flowers. Anyone know what it is?
This is a tough one to get rid of. Once they reroot by runners, it seems the connection to the original plant rots, creating an independant plant which produces runners.
If it spreads with runners and is as prolific as you say, most probably Potentilla recta or Sulfur cinquefoil. If so the flowers would be pale yellow. Usually grows taller as do most Potentilla so must be being foraged by your animals. That is unless you mow the field, that might account for it's short growth. After doing a little research there is another possibility and that is P. simplex or Oldfield cinquefoil. It is normally shorter than P. recta even running along the ground. It normally has 5 leaflets and the flowers are a definite yellow hue, rather than the pale yellow of P. recta. P. recta also usually has 7 leaflets as in your picture. Harry
I also have this in areas my goats aren't in and it is very low to the ground (creeping cinquefoil?)! I've heard that it is an excelent forage that is good for goats/cattle/etc. Any ideas? Thanks! Also - if it is a "Cinquefoil" whay does it have seven leaves instead of five? It's not a mock/wild strawberry (I also have them), but doesn't really match the cinquefoil, either!
Many of the descriptions for Potentilla recta- common name Sulfur cinquefoil list it as having 5-7 leaflets. I have seen pictures on-line of P. simplex-common name Oldfield cinquefoil with 6 leaflets. The number of leaflets in these plants is at best variable and not the most reliable way to distinguish these plants. The palmate (shaped like a palm of the hand) or whorled (leaves all arising from a single point) leaf is a more important distinguishing mark. The first thing I would look at to distinguish between the two would be the flower color. Bright yellow or pale yellow. Bright yellow will most probably indicate that it is most likely P. simplex or relative. Pale yellow to a creamy white will probably mean that the plant is P. recta. There are other choices within the Potentilla genus as this link to the USDA Plants page state of Nebraska search indicates. You might take a look at some of the names(indented names are synonyms, so don't search for them) you find there to compare to your plant, as you have first hand knowledge of what your plant looks like. But in any case, I'm pretty certain that you are looking at some type of cinquefoil or by its botanical name Potentilla and most probably one of the above two. The common names I used above are the common names given by the USDA Plants page and might have no connection to how you locally refer to the plant. I looked up 'creeping cinquefoil'-P. reptans and it resembles your plant, but the USDA page doesn't list it as being in your state. This does not necessarily rule it out completely, but the nearest state was two states away and that makes it improbable that that is your plant. The search I did on line to find it in Nebraska was a quick one at best, so you might try to google -Potentilla reptans Nebraska- (minus the hyphens) and see if you can find any reference to it being in your area. Harry
Ok, Thanks! I'll look it up! I was wondering if it was good or bad for goats? It is not currently in the pasture I have them in, but need to open the area up to pasture this Summer. My guess is that it is not harmful to them, but want to make sure!
In my searches on the web (again very quick ones at best), what I found was that Potentilla wasn't a great forage plant as far as nutrient value, and tended to crowd out those plants (ie grasses) that were, but werent really harmful. You might also do a search for -Potentilla forage- (minus the hyphens) and see if you find anything more. If you own the land or can gain permission to, you might try overseeding with grass seed in early spring or fall. If you are in an area with mostly native plants, then you should try and find a variety or species of grass that is also native to the area. You might try and contact your local Extension agent, usually affiliated with a local college or university or perhaps your County government. They might be able to direct you as to what to plant and where to get it. Harry
