Stem
- Up to 6 ft. tall, semi-woody, waxy and lacks hair (glabrous); many stems can arise from each crown; often branched near top; branches arise from leaf axils
Leaves
- Alternate, oval to lance-shaped, mostly 3-12 in. long, 1-3 in. wide, green to gray-green, lack hair and waxy; edges (margins) smooth to toothed and can also be curled; leaf bases DO NOT clasp stem; lower leaves larger than upper leaves
Flower
- Small and white with 4 petals; arranged in dense clusters at the tips of stems
- Seed pods are round, flattened, less than 0.1 in. diameter, usually covered with hairs; each seed pod has 2 chambers, each with 1 seed
Other
- Grows best on moist sites; often found in floodplains, pastures, meadows, hay fields and along waterways; known to occur throughout Nevada
- Perennial; reproduces by roots and seed
- Also known as tall whitetop
Control
- Mowing, digging, tillage, burning and grazing established stands is NOT effective
- Apply chlorsulfuron, imazapic, imazapyr, or metsulfuron to actively growing plants through early-bloom; 2,4-D and glyphosate at bud to flower can be effective if repeated for several years
Blecker, L., Creech, E., Dick, J., Gephart, S., Hefner, M., Kratsch, H., Moe, A., Schultz, B.
2020,
Nevada Noxious Weed Field Guide – Perennial pepperweed,
Extension, University of Nevada, Reno, Field Guide
