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DESCRIPTION:
Common cocklebur is a coarse, bushy summer annual broadleaf that infests pastures and other moist areas.
Cocklebur is toxic to mammals, and its burs lower the value of wool. Cotyledons (seed leaves) are bright green, shiny on
the upper surface, pointed, and about six times longer than they are wide. The bur may remain attached to the base of the
seedling, helping to identify the weed when it is pulled. True leaves on seedlings are notched on the margins and taper toward
the leaf tip. Mature plants have thick, highly branched, fleshy stems with purple
or black spots. Leaves are lobed, triangular, coarsely toothed, and are borne on long stalks. Clusters of small green to
rusty red male flower heads develop where the upper leaf stalk meets the stem (axils). Female flowers develop in leaf axils
below the male flower heads. At maturity parts of the female flower become hardened prickly burs that enclose 2 seeds. Burs
are oval-shaped with a pair of beak-like hooks.
Broadleaf ID illustration.
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