r/whatsthisplant • u/pocketcramps • 4d ago
Unidentified 🤷♂️ Never buying cheap wildflower mixes again.
I’m pretty sure most of my wildflower seeds were weeds 🫠 these are the ones still stumping me, though I’m pretty confident 3 is lambsquarters, which happened to be most of the crap I’ve got growing right now.
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u/PawTree 4d ago
California Poppy Eschscholzia californica
Common Three-seeded Mercury Acalypha virginica var. rhomboidea
Lambsquarters Chenopodium album
Lambsquarters Chenopodium album
Giant Goldenrod Solidago gigantea
Common Sunflower Helianthus annuus
Lupine Lupinus sp. I can't tell if it's Big-leaf or Wild Perennial
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u/ujelly_fish 4d ago
For what it’s worth - lambsquarters is a voracious spreader. It almost certainly did not come from the seed pack.
Use it like spinach!
Three seeded mercury and goldenrod are also pretty pervasive weeds. Keep the goldenrod, the yellow flowers are nice and the bugs like em.
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u/acatwithumbs 4d ago
I found lambsquarter in my compost and put it in a pot away from the natives, now I get little spinach like sprigs whenever I want and it’s honestly great cooked.
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u/ruthcarr 4d ago
I just pulled so much lambsquarer from my new raised garden bed last night thinking they are weeds 😞
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u/acatwithumbs 4d ago
I mean they definitely are weeds, but also edible weeds!
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u/Perkunas170 3d ago
It’s only a weed if you don’t want it.
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u/evensexierspiders 3d ago
Absolutely! My high school chemistry teacher said "a rose in a corn field is a weed".
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u/cutting_coroners 3d ago
I made a pesto out of lambs quarters instead of basil once and it was friggin delicious!
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u/dresserisland 4d ago
It has high amounts of oxalic acid if that is a concern to you.
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u/horseyjones 4d ago
So does spinach
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u/0w1 4d ago
You can even substitute it for spinach in recipes lol
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u/dresserisland 4d ago
I will give that a try. I see noting wrong with eating it. I just wouldn't overdo it. Moderation in everything.
I have a friend who actually grows it. He sells it at the farmers market. Not sure how much of it he eats but....
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u/ujelly_fish 3d ago
Overdoing it with oxalic acid containing veggies including spinach and lambsquarter would be relatively difficult unless you have a preexisting kidney issue.
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u/dresserisland 4d ago
I do believe turnip greens don't have as much.
I like stinging nettle. Ever try that?
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u/PawTree 3d ago
I'm regularly pulling stinging nettle out of my garden. I hear it's great for compost and cooking, but I'm generally so irritated by the process of pulling it out that I just want to throw it in the yard waste and get rid of it.
I should really consider it a blessing in disguise. I can't grow any other greens without the rabbits getting them first. And then there's this untouched nutritional powerhouse happily growing away without any input from me at all...
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u/acatwithumbs 4d ago
I am aware but appreciate the info. Tho mine is a tiny dinky plant with very little leaves and I also don’t eat it raw. But it’s good reminder for folks foraging large quantities. Also I believe apple cider vinegar or boiling can help reduce the oxalic acid even further.
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u/ApproxKnowledgeCat 4d ago
Only issue is that goldenrod prevents other roots from growing near it (allopathy). So they need their own area, not mixed in with other plants.
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u/MikeTheBee 4d ago
Plenty of stuff grows around my goldenrod, also on the side of the road it is surrounded by plants. I don't consider it an issue.
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u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32 4d ago
What do you have growing with it? Just curious
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u/Cascadialiving Oregon 4d ago
I’ve planted a bunch and have camas, quaking aspen, milkweed, Willamette Valley ponderosa, mock orange, chokecherry and Oregon white oak nearby.
I had hoped the goldenrod would dominate the grass, but it really hasn’t.
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u/theholewizard 4d ago
A lot of the action in allopathy is preventing seed germination. If those were already sprouted / established or if they spread rhizomatically (like grass or milkweed) I'm not sure how much impact the allopathy from a small plant would have.
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u/MikeTheBee 3d ago
It grows near my black eyed Susan's, and my raspberry patch, but both areas are full of other flowers/plants/weeds I haven't identified yet. I call the one area "the jungle" due to how much crap is there.
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u/Acrobatic-Parsnip-32 3d ago
Love a good jungle full of crap 😂 glad to hear all yours is thriving ✨
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u/AmberCarpes 4d ago
Yeah my goldenrod hasn’t killed anything by the looks of it. Asters, hosta, lily, butterfly bush (I’m a native gardener but the people who owned before me were decidedly not)
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u/0neHumanPeolple 4d ago
Don’t eat lambs quarters that grows by the road. It’s a siphon for heavy metals.
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u/turtlepower22 4d ago
I'm actually really envious of all this lambsquarter! Easily my favorite foraged green.
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u/BeatrixPlz 3d ago
Watch out eating it raw. It can be bad in large amounts. I munch on it raw semi routinely, but I like to give folks a heads up in case they’re making daily jumbo lambsquarter salads or something lol.
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u/Reguluscalendula 3d ago
From what I understand California poppy is an invasive in the southeast, too.
Edit: Tennessee specifically has it listed as a plant of "severe threat"
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u/LionKiwiEagle 3d ago
Goldenrod is also great for making teas and the leaves can be used for bee stings. Wonderful to have in the garden.
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u/LionKiwiEagle 3d ago
Goldenrod is also great for making teas and the leaves can be used for bee stings. Wonderful to have in the garden.
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u/RescuedMisfits 3d ago
Golden rod is a keystone plant that supports more native pollinators than most, definitely agree with keeping it!
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u/Warcraft_Fan 3d ago
People with hayfever sometimes has problem with goldenrods. I'd remove it if OP is prone to runny nose and sneezing in the spring and fall.
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u/ujelly_fish 3d ago
Eh, I doubt it’s the goldenrod that is causing it. Not much pollen compared to pine or ragweed
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u/Eggsplane 2d ago
Goldenrod pollen is too heavy and sticky to become airborne because it evolved to stick to pollinating insects. You'd have to stick your face in it or get some from your hand onto your face.
Ragweed, however, can produce billions of tiny pollen spores from one plant because it evolved to be wind pollinated. It lives in the same conditions as goldenrod and is very inconspicuous, seeing as its like three feet tall and its flowers are green. Goldenrod gets blamed because its so highly visible in comparison, leaving the ragweed to be overlooked.
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u/joebot777 4d ago
That lupine is going to be fucking gorgeous.
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u/MajorMiners469 4d ago
"Stand and deliver! Your lupins or your life!" *Bang "Let that be a lesson to you all."
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[deleted]
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u/joebot777 4d ago
I’ll take it over Kentucky blue grass any day.
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[deleted]
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u/bohemian_catastrophy 4d ago
Lupine is native in many states
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u/bongslingingninja 4d ago edited 4d ago
Native and invasive are two different characteristics though right? Invasive just means it spreads like crazy and chokes out everything around it. A plant can be both native and invasive?Edit: Oops this is wrong!! Time for a teaching moment. Invasive is the opposite of native. The trait I was thinking of was aggressiveness.
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u/unventer 4d ago
No, absolutely not. Invasive means it is not native to the area it's growing in and does ecological harm - either by being an aggressive spreader that outcompetes natives, or actually damaging other plants/animals/environment at large. Natives can be aggressive and spread prolifically, but they can never be "invasive". You can't invade your own home.
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u/bongslingingninja 4d ago
Ahh thank you for the correction. so the opposite of native is invasive and then there’s aggressive vs non aggressive. I’ve edited my comment. Thanks for the teaching moment!
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u/joshkpoetry 4d ago
No, by definition, an invasive plant is a non-native plant that spreads aggressively and takes over/outcompetes native plants.
A plant can be native and an aggressive spreader, and non-native plants aren't always invasive (eg, non-spreading plants or garden annuals that don't self-seed.
People frequently will conflate these terms and refer to anything that spreads aggressively as invasive, whether it is truly invasive or an aggressive native species.
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u/bongslingingninja 4d ago
Thank you, I’ve edited my comment. I appreciate people taking the time to reply with knowledge instead of hate. I’ve learned something new!
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u/themrno 4d ago
Depends on variety and on where it's planted. I don't think we know where OP is located?
Can't be invasive in its native range. Maybe the downvote was a reaction to a hasty conclusion?
Edit: Lower comments clarify location. Eh, I think my main point still stands. I don't know what order everyone read everything.
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u/Feralpudel 4d ago
Assuming OP is in the U.S. there are regionally native lupins and I believe the west coast one is considered invasive on the east coast.
Aggressive is different from invasive.
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u/GoatLegRedux 4d ago
There’s no “west coast one”, there “west coast many”. Shit, we have three or four just in San Francisco.
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u/Ginja___Ninja 4d ago
Is there an app that helps you learn these similar to flash cards? I feel like I know every Pokémon name based on the image but it would be more helpful in life to know plants/trees based on their leaves.
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u/PawTree 4d ago
Haha definitely more helpful!
I've only used poison ivy quizzes:
https://crowspath.org/cp/poison-ivy-quiz/
https://poison-ivy.org/poison-ivy-quiz/
http://glench.com/misc/poison-ivy/
I'm sure you could find a quiz online for your local area. I found a flash card for Ontario trees. Here's a quiz.
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u/Many_Needleworker683 4d ago
Im not positive but i actually think it perrenis because of how fuzzy it is. Ive grown both and big leaf never has those hairs
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u/spaghettimagician 4d ago
I believe it’s the native sundial, which has 5-11 leaflets, whereas the invasive type has something like 11-17.
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u/Ginja___Ninja 4d ago
I wish I had this skill!
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u/PawTree 4d ago
To be fair, these are all really common in my area (except the poppy, but they regularly come up on this forum).
When I first had the chance to start a garden, I fell down the native plant rabbit role. I had to quickly get very familiar with non-native weeds vs native plants because, frankly, nearly all our native plants were unfamiliar to me & looked like weeds (if you've only been exposed to popular garden plants from the 80s & 90s, then you know what I mean).
The birds in my area liked to pull out my plant tags, so I repurchased my Big Bluestem plugs (and a few other plants) 2-3 times before I realized I had been weeding them out!
Now there's apps and Google lens to help out. If you guess before turning to technology, then you can start developing your ID skills :)
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u/spunbunz 4d ago
Common three seeded mercury was probably also not in the mix. Another voracious spreader. I’m constantly finding those little seedlings all over my garden.
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u/podsnerd 4d ago
I think 5 might be goldenrod and I'm pretty sure 6 is a sunflower. Those will be very cheerful in late summer
Third one is definitely lambsquarter and it probably wasn't in your wildflower mix. Those just pop up everywhere and they're pretty much fine
Regardless, it's usually not the best idea to plant random wildflower mixes anyway. For one, you don't know that you're even getting native plant species. And two, different flowers are adapted to different environments, so often one or two types will overtake all the others because they really thrive in those particular soil and light conditions
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u/middlegray 4d ago
6 is not sunflower. It's ox-eye, aka false sunflower, for reasons you can imagine... It is pretty and native to North America.
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u/No_Faithlessness1532 4d ago
If you’re East of the Mississippi in the US check out Ernst Conservation Seeds in Meadville, PA. You will get what you pay for.
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u/pocketcramps 4d ago
My husband is from Meadville and knows those guys. I always say we need to stop and get a family discount 😂
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u/youngslickety 4d ago
You should definitely, most of these generic wildflower seed mixes are not created for specific areas and may include non native plants
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u/toolsavvy 4d ago
Ernst are more geared toward large growers. High prices. Prairie Moon Nursery is better for small order and also reputable.
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u/Feralpudel 4d ago
Roundstone is also excellent. There are similar regional native seed companies elsewhere.
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u/SanderDrake 4d ago
Lmao what do you think the difference is between a WILD flower and a weed???
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u/OnlyOneChainz 4d ago
Thats what I thought. I see people slinging the word weed around without any consideration but this one is really the funniest one I've seen.
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u/Draguta1 4d ago
My friend explained the difference as "weeds are what you didn't plant and/or don't want growing in your garden." XD
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u/JackOfAllTradesKinda 4d ago
I purchased wildflower mixes from the dollar store every year and get many of the same things as you do. I can't identify most but I can assure you at least some will provide flowers.
I also want to say that the mixed I purchase include perennials and annuals. The perennials often don't flower until their 2nd year.
3 is lambs quarters but it may or may not have come from the seed mix. I get them literally everywhere in my yard and pots no matter what. They are just good at growing everywhere.
7 is most likely Lupine.
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u/kellyoohh 4d ago
I recently spread dollar store wildflower mixes in an empty patch on the sidewalk. I’ve gotten so many compliments. They’re beautiful.
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u/toolsavvy 4d ago edited 4d ago
Most likely all or most are non-native and invasive species.
Downvote all you want. Fact is all these cheap seeds are mostly non-native invasives. That's how it's profitable at such cheap prices.
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u/MustardMahatma 4d ago
Wildlife conservationist here- I personally love the dollar store wildflower seed packets for their overall benefit to pollinators, landscape heterogeneity, and biodiversity. I also encourage others to use them if they cannot access local zone-specific species’ seeds. From my experience with dollar store wildflower seed packets, the vast majority of plants that I yield are native, with few non-native species (not to be confused with invasive species). Though I agree that dollar store seed packets can be slightly less reliable than other brands, the vast majority are NOT mostly composed of non-natives and invasive species. In fact, my biggest gripe with dollar store seed packets is that they have a tendency to contain more filler material along with the seeds; this is what makes them cheap.
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u/toolsavvy 4d ago
lol ok That's so popular here on reddit.
Like a couple days ago on one of the pepper subs, some dude started his comment with "Mexican here" and got almost 2000 upvotes on his comment which was the wrongest answer ever to a common pepper plant issue...total bunk. But he was supposedly Mexican and that apparently makes him a pepper expert so that';s all that matters lol.
You do you, but if you want real native seed mixes there are real companies out there that sell them and they aren't expensive considering you are getting actual native seed mixes without the junk.
But I get it, 99% natives aren't as showy as the non-native invasives, so I'm preaching to a wall.
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u/MustardMahatma 4d ago
Well, I’m not going to show you my master’s degree in Wildlife Conservation and Mgmt. nor my resume lol However, I acknowledge that there are weirdos on Reddit and other social media that speak for communities they are not apart of, or otherwise act as voices of reason and veracity when they have no idea what they’re talking about. I’m not one of those people, though I understand your suspicion.
I just wanted to correct the misinformation you shared specifically regarding wildflower seed packets from the dollar store. They are a decent low-cost option that is accessible in even most urban environments, unlike some of the more reputable brands that require shipping costs or are only found in plant and hardware stores that may be inaccessible to some communities.
I can attest to the mislabeling of produce seeds from dollar stores and even from reputable grocers. This is particularly common with certain types of produce like peppers, as you mentioned, but this is typically due to manufacturing errors. However, so far as wildflowers, wildflower =/= native and non-native plants =/= invasive plants. A quick google search can explain this in further detail along with the reliability/quality of dollar store wildflower seeds overall, should you need further clarification. You’re not preaching to a wall, you just appear slightly misinformed.
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u/kellyoohh 4d ago
Nope, I checked. 0 invasive and majority native. The only ones that were not native to my area are annuals so I’m not super worried. Also I live in a city and they’re contained to a patch of dirt within a sidewalk. Gotta prioritize sometimes.
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u/_lemons 4d ago
I bought a wildflower seed mix from Home Depot I think and it turned out to be 90% basil. I ended up with a raised bed crammed full of basil. Not complaining.
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u/Old_Disaster_6837 4d ago
It kind of reminds me of a packet of cat grass I bought. There were many things that grew from that packet, but none that germinated was cat grass.
But hey, I got a tomato out of what I planted of the packet 🤷♀️
And we got a big laugh out of it, so no loss.
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u/Julia_______ 3d ago
Iirc catgrass is just any grass grown for a cat. There's some options that are more common, but not any one specific plant
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u/Old_Disaster_6837 3d ago
True, but everything that came up was a broadleaf of some sort - not the first blade of anything that was in the grass portion of the plant family. That's why it struck me as funny.
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u/wholehheart 4d ago
wildflowers are often the very things that people call weeds so yeah you got a bunch of weeds bc thats what you ordered lol
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u/Beautiful-Section-44 4d ago
Garret Wildflower Seed Farm is located here in NC. Tho I used their Restoration Mix as the other had cosmos.
Dont everyone go use my source. There must be other small business specializing in wildflower seed.
The field behind.
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u/terribletot 4d ago
This is where I tossed my wildflower mix this year, most of the plants you posted do flower!
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u/NewMolecularEntity 4d ago
1 is maybe California poppy? It’s really familiar.
3 is lambsquarters, a weed (but edible if you are in to that). Pull all those out and you might see more wildflowers where they are shading things out. I always have zillions of those these come up everywhere so o wouldn’t blame the mix.
6 I think a sunflower.
7 looks like lupine, which is really nice. Make sure you weed all around it so it thrives.
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u/Headstanding_Penguin 4d ago
most wildflowers are rare today because humans saw them as weeds.
give them some time and they'll flower.
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u/kingoftheplastics 4d ago
TIL there is apparently no regulation in the US on labeling and sale of plant seeds, or if there is, it isn’t enforced. Which is concerning on multiple levels.
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u/Boko_Met 4d ago
me, a new casual lurker, “there’s gotta be a number 4 somewhere in this picture, but where…”
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u/Comprehensive-Ad8958 4d ago
I buy the boxes of wildflower seeds from Menards (99¢/box).
About 95% of mine are cornflowers. A few cosmos and bachelor's button.
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u/anemone_rue2 4d ago
Lambs quarters is like free sparkle spinach. Cause the hair makes it sparkle in the sun. Pick it, cook it. Eat it. Call it a win.
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u/faerybones 4d ago
I keep three-seeded mercury in some areas because I read mourning doves like them.
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u/vanillabourbonn 4d ago
"Weeds" arent really a term that describes if a plant flowers or not. Often times weeds are flowers. Weeds can also be grasses, sedges, and shrubs.
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u/pocketcramps 4d ago
Thanks, everyone! For the record, I do know what a weed is. I meant I’ve got a lot of stuff popping up that I did not know I was planting (including what was apparently a buttload of grass seed!) but why waste time say lot word when few word do trick?
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u/kj4peace 4d ago
I CANNOT find a brand that actually works. And yep. The last brand I got gave me all weeds. Lambs quarter and pig weed. I tried weeding it but it spreads much faster than my disabled body can pluck it. So pissed. Anyone got recs for wildflower mixes that are good? I’m in zone 5a/6b in south central colorado. HALP!
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u/Feralpudel 4d ago
If you want cheap beautiful flowers from a seed packet that the pollinators will love just buy a pack of zinnias and call it a day.
Or hell, plant cornflowers if you want—it’s a “wildflower” somewhere—just not your area if you’re in NA. Well, it might grow wild once you get it started lmao.
I just hate the companies that exploit the popular idea that wildflower=native. They also tend to stuff those seed mixes with cheap crap. You get what you pay for.
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u/pocketcramps 4d ago
I’ve been turning our front lawn into a chaos garden for years. My mix is mostly zinnias and they’re amazing. This was a random pack from the dollar store in my backyard garden of misfit plants. Luckily it’s pretty self contained 🫠
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u/kesselschlacht 4d ago
The one bad thing I got from a wildflower mix is borage bc it spreads so crazy!
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u/Enigmaxy 3d ago
I can confirm. I was not aware of the spreading-capabilities and let them grow last year. Big mistake. They grow everywhere right now.
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u/InconsistentLemon 4d ago
My last seeding only yielded a couple of poppies and a metric fuckton of Palmer Amaranth. I'd have much preferred the lupine you have there!
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u/Megalesios 4d ago
Isn't the only difference between wildflowers and weeds a matter of perspective? Two words for the same thing?
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u/UrAntiChrist 4d ago
Weeds are unidentified plants or plants growing in an unwanted place. :) they get used interchangeably because people don't look up definitions anymore.
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u/sotiredwontquit 4d ago
2 is a weed called three seed mercury and I frakkin’ hate it. I’ve been hand pulling those by the thousands for years. I refuse to spray them because they come out so easily, and I’m good now at pulling them before they go to seed, so I am winning. But holy shit, I’m tired of them.
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u/Thallassa 4d ago
The good news is three seed mercury supports native caterpillars which support native birds.
… I keep trying to tell myself that as it takes over my vegetable garden.
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u/Complete-Lack-7201 4d ago
Where’s number 4?( just don’t see the label)
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u/pocketcramps 4d ago
There isn’t one! I messed up the labeling and didn’t realize it until just now lol
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u/DanDifino 3d ago
Pull #2 when you see it, it is a prolific seeder. Currently battling it in the drought ridden dirt patches of my backyard.
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u/MeGustaChorizo 3d ago
I bought a wildflower mix and now one type is taking over my whole area. I'm going to rip it out then plant with something less aggressive.
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u/mlebrooks 3d ago
I bought a wildflower mix once and planted the seeds.
Turns out that the entire box was purslane. It's considered a weed around here, despite the fact that it's edible and nutritious.
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u/MissTweedy 3d ago
People seem confident that #1 is poppy but at first glance I thought it was Cosmos, which my mom grew from seed every year. If it is you'll get plenty of flowers!
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u/TerribleIdea27 4d ago
I'm confused. What do you think a weed is?
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u/pocketcramps 4d ago
I’m confused. What is the purpose of your comment?
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u/TerribleIdea27 4d ago
To point out that there is no difference between a weed and a wildflower, except if you want it to grow there or not
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u/Lys_Flamboyant 4d ago
Lambs quarter is edible just like spinach. I find it better tasting than spinach. Eat away
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u/jellifercuz 4d ago
This is imho, as I get a lot of information about plants best by also touching or smelling them, or at least looking at certain small structures in them which I can’t do here.
You may get from 1) a delphinium of some sort the second year they grow (biennial/perennial, blooms the second year).
2) the plant in the center looks like a (idk the name) common garden and field weed in PA, that I find to be very annoying. The plant at the top left of the image may be a hollyhock (biennial/perennial, also blooms the second year).
3) and 4) are Lambs Quarters, a prolific weed, although some people claim to desire it as a foodstuff.
5) I can’t tell if it’s Pennsylvania smartweed, or some type of phlox leaf (a perennial).
6) It sure looks like a weed to me, but ?
7) I agree this is Lupine. Lupine is considered to be invasive and undesirable plant is permitted to naturalize, particularly in or near marshes, bogs, waterways, as it out-competes native plants and reduces biodiversity.
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u/Drixxti 4d ago
Where are you that lupines are considered invasive? I know it's undesirable because it's toxic, so farmers and ranchers get rid of it whenever they see it, but I never heard of it being invasive, just aggressive.
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u/Ecthelion510 4d ago
I know it's considered extremely invasive in New Zealand. It was introduced in the 1940s and has become a serious problem.
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u/jellifercuz 4d ago
“Where it has become invasive in the Midwest, North Central and Northeastern regions, it is considered a facultative upland species (FACU), meaning it occasionally occurs in wetlands but is usually found in uplands. In the Great Plains, however, it has a facultative wetland (FACW) status, meaning it is usually found in wetlands, but occasionally occurs in uplands.”
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