Flower ID: IMG_5293.JPG-09-14-2020 Flower name (scientific): Chenopodium album Linnaeus PY: 1753. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) ken-oh-POH-dee-um AL-bum Flower name (common): Lamb's-quarters Family name (common): Amaranth Family name (scientific): Amaranthaceae Scientific name origin: Genus: From the Greek chen for goose and pous for foot, or podion a little foot, hence goose-foot or little goose-foot, referring to the shape of the leaves. Specific epithet: Latin for white. Common name origin: Prior (Prior, 1870) suggests the name Lamb's quarters derives from Lammas quarter, the name of the English harvest festival, on account of the bloom time of the plant. Flower description: Size: 0.1 to 0.2 inches (3 to 5 mm) Petal count: 0 (flower is 5-parted) Color: green Other: flower arrangement, Panicle Plant description: Size: 6 to 72 inches (15 to 183 cm) Stem hairy: glabrous and sparsely to densely farinose Other: Leaf description: attachment is alternate, type is simple Size: Leaves are about 1 to 10 cm long and 1 to 6 cm wide. Color: Medium green to whitish appearance on some leaves. Hairy: upper surface glabrous or sparsely to moderately farinose, lower surface moderately to densely farinose. Other: Shape: leaf, ovate-lanceolate to rhombic-lanceolate or broadly oblong (FNA), broadly lanceolate or ovate (IL). Shape: leaf, ovate-lanceolate to rhombic-lanceolate or broadly oblong (FNA), broadly lanceolate or ovate (IL) Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Native Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Common Bloom time (typical): June to October Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Annual Habitat: Disturbed sites, waste areas, roadsides, fields, weedy meadows, sun or part shade. Fruit: Depressed-ovoid about 1.2 to 1.5 mm wide. Seed: Black and shiny, margins approximaely round, 0.9 to 1.6 mm in diameter. Importance to wildlife: Similar species (if any): The Chenopodium genus is difficult to separate into species. Part of the difficulty is due to plant varability, to the fine detail needed for an identication, and to complications arising from hybridization. A hand lens is needed to see some of the details. There are many subspp., vars., subvars., forms, and subfs. for Chenopodium album, which might give a hint of the complexity involved. A species closely resembling C. album is C. berlandieri, the former having a shiny round smooth black seed with a diameter of around 1 mm, the latter having a similar seed, but with a pitted surface. A hand lens is needed to examine the seed surface. There are species in other genera such as Dysphania and Amaranthus that have some resembalance to the various Chenopodium. Ethnobotany: The Potawatomi employed this plant as a medicinal food to prevent or treat scurvy and used the leaves in salads or as a green vegetable (Smith, pp. 42, 98, 1933). The Menominee also used the plant as a vegetable (Smith, p. 28, 1923). The Meskwaki also used this plant for food (Smith, p. 209, 1928). Latitude: 44.794708 Longitude: -91.495605 Altitude: 263.90 Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Adams, Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Brown, Buffalo, Burnett, Calumet, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Door, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire, Florence, Fond du Lac, Forest, Grant, Green, Green Lake, Iowa, Iron, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, Kenosha, Kewaunee, La Crosse, Lafayette, Langlade, Lincoln, Manitowoc, Marathon, Marinette, Marquette, Menominee, Milwaukee, Monroe, Oconto, Oneida, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Portage, Price, Racine, Richland, Rock, Rusk, Sauk, Sawyer, Shawano, Sheboygan, St. Croix, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vernon, Vilas, Walworth, Washburn, Washington, Waukesha, Waupaca, Waushara, Winnebago, Wood) Click here for distribution map In US: (AK, AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY) Click here for distribution map In Canada: (AB, BC, LB, MB, NB, NF, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT) Click here for distribution map References: Synonym(s): Basionym: na Homotypic Synonym(s): POWO lists 4 homotypic Synonyms for this species. Heterotypic Synonym(s): na Autonym:Chenopodium album var. album (Other infraspecifics are Chenopodium album var. missouriense (Aellen) Bassett & Crompton, Chenopodium album var. reticulatum (Aellen) Uotila. The former has been recorded in North America while the latter has not.) Wetland Status (NC): FACU Wetland Status (MW): FACU