Purslane and another weed seed (likely Carpet Weed)

[flowerbug]

i was shelling beans out and sometimes when picking beans i am also weeding and putting those weeds in the same box flat as the bean pods. when bringing in the flat i try to get all the weeds out and put into a weed bucket but not always get all of them so some of the seeds may show up in the chaff at the bottom of the flat.


the first picture is of the Purslane seeds - they are large enough and distinctive enough that i can see them:

in contrast there are some smaller weed seeds which i think are Carpet Weed seeds - while i may have a chance of seeing Purslane seeds on the ground if they fall off the plant when a seed capsule breaks open, i don't think i have much of a chance to see these smaller and lighter colored seeds:

i'm glad the camera and the photo editing program lets me see them better. i need a magnifier or microscope...

 

[digitS']

What can I say?

I once posted a picture of a pigweed that had bloomed and was developing seed. It was about 3/4" tall.

We don't think of pigweed as a small annual plant. No one would be surprised by a 36" pigweed growing at the corner of a field. A sneaky 8" plant under a cucumber vine wouldn't surprise. Three-quarters of an inch?? How are we to defend ourselves from having to weed out a dozen or 2 dozen plants in the following year?

It's not just North Americans at the mercy of "Old World" weeds carried to these shores unwittingly or deliberately. Plants from this continent are companions to farm and garden crops the world over.

BTW. Is this Ajuga (bugle weed) to which you refer? Pretty flowers.

Steve

 

[Pulsegleaner]

I remember back at one time some of the lentils that would come in from India were so contaminated that they had over a dozen types/species of vetch alone mixed in with them, and you found about a cups worth per 5lb bag.

 

[flowerbug]

What can I say?

I once posted a picture of a pigweed that had bloomed and was developing seed. It was about 3/4" tall.

hahaha! why not?

BTW. Is this Ajuga (bugle weed) to which you refer? Pretty flowers.

no, this one is the likely one:

Carpetweed, <em>Mollugo verticillata</em>

Carpetweed lives up to its common name by quickly forming a flat mat over the ground. This prostrate summer annual has freely branching stems with whorls of green leaves at the widely spaced nodes. It is most common in disturbed areas – gardens, new or thin lawns, and roadsides. Find out more...

hort.extension.wisc.edu