Common Name: Pigweed or Amaranth
Botanical name: Amaranthus spinosa
Bloom Period: Spring through Summer
Description: annual with taproot, alternate leaves, 1–3 feet tall
Habitat: found in cultivated ground, can grow in the cracks of sidewalks
Uses: Food- using the leaves and stems for salads and the seeds for breads, cereals Dyes- pale yellow or tan Fiber- making rope
Common Name: Chickweed
Botanical Name: Stellaria media
Bloom Period: Spring through Fall
Description: annual, low growing, stems root at joints
Habitat: lawns and gardens
Uses: Food- raw in salads or cooked as greens Medicinal- high in vitamin C, used for sores and bruises
Common Name: Curly Dock, Sour Dock
Botanical Name: Rumex crispus
Bloom Period: Summer
Description: perennial, 1 – 2 feet tall, deep taproot, oblong lance shaped leaves, wavy at the edges
Habitat: fields and disturbed ground
Uses: Food- leaves used as a cooked green and seeds are edible used as a cereal or a meal for baking bread Dyes- yellows and browns Medicinal- laxative and antiseptic
Common Name: Henbit
Botanical Name: Lamium amplexicaule
Bloom Period: Spring/Summer
Description: annual or biennial, a few inches tall, purple flowers , leaves have scalloped edges
Habitat: found in gardens and cultivated fields, 4 angled square stems
Uses: Food- a member of the mint family, suitable for tea and for salads
Common Name: Lambsquarter
Botanical Name: Chenopodium album
Bloom Period: Summer
Description: mealy (whitish powder) on top and especially bottoms of leaves, leaves shaped like a goose foot, 12 -24 inches tall
Habitat: open fields and cultivated land
Uses: Food- leaves steamed or boiled as greens. Seeds ground into cereal or flower or popped like popcorn Dye- bright yellow
Common Name: Prickly Lettuce
Botanical Name: Lactuca serrriola
Bloom Period: Spring/Summer
Description: annual, 1- 3 feet tall prickles on back midrib of leaf, seven related wild lettuces in Texas
Habitat: gardens and disturbed soil sites
Uses: Food- early leaves and stems used in salads Industry- latex in the milky white liquid has commercial uses
Common Name: Nut Sedge/Nut Grass
Botanical Name: Cyperus rotundus
Bloom Period: Summer
Description: perennial, grass-like leaves several inches tall in a fan- shaped cluster. Flower stalk is a triangular stem. Nut-like tuber underground
Habitat: lawns and gardens
Uses: Food- eat the tuber or grind it into flour Fibers- some varieties make paper
Common Name: Peppergrass
Botanical Name: Lepidium virginicum
Bloom Period: Spring
Description: annual, 1-2 feet tall, branched, rounded mass of seed stalks
Habitat: cultivated fields and disturbed ground
Uses: Food- seeds as spice, leaves in salads Dye- greens and beige for textiles
Common Name: Poke Salad, Ink Berry
Botanical Name: Phytolacca americana
Bloom Period: Spring
Description: perennial, 6-8 feet tall, red stems and purple berries
Habitat: open fields and cleared ground
Uses: Food- stems and leaves as greens (danger, must know how) Dye- pink or red Industry- ink in schools 100 years ago
Common Name: Spurge
Botanical Name: Euphorbia maculata
Bloom Period: Spring/Summer
Description: small leaved, mat like growth, milky juice when stems broken
Habitat: fields and lawns
Uses: Industry- latex and hydrocarbon uses for fuels, rubbers, and plastics Medicinal- white sap will remove warts
Common Name: Bindweed
Botanical Name: Convolvulus arvensis
Bloom Period: Summer
Description: Morning Glory family, low to the ground vining/twining plant, roots to 3 feet deep.
Habitat: open field and cultivated gardens
Uses: Dye- yellow for textiles
Common Name: Purslane
Botanical Name: Portulaca oleracea
Bloom Period: Spring/Summer
Description: Low growing with small thick leaves. When broken, leaves exude a mucilaginous juice (like okra)
Habitat: cultivated fields and gardens
Uses: Food- leaves and stems, boiled, steamed, fried or pickled seeds for making flour for breads and muffins
Common Name: Bermuda Grass
Botanical Name: Cynodon dactylon
Bloom Period: Summer
Description: perennial, spreads by seeds, surface runners (stolons), under ground roots (rhizomes)
Habitat: grows everywhere
Uses: hard wearing grass for heavily used areas and to cover bare ground