Common crupina
Crupina vulgaris Cass.
Keys to Identification
Small pink flowers- Slender stems
This information courtesy of the Colorado Natural Areas Program
Family: Asteraceae (Aster, Sunflower)
Other names: Bearded creeper
USDA Code: CRVU2
Legal Status: Colorado Noxious Weed List A
Identification
Lifecycle: Annual
Growth form: Forb
Flower: Pink, lavender or purple ray flowers, 1-5 per branch.
Seeds/Fruit: A distinct ring of dark, stiff bristles encircle the broad end of the seed giving the appearance of a fishing fly (Whitsen, 1999). Soil seed bank viability period of at least 3 years.
Leaves: Rosette leaves are obovate with entire to slightly toothed margins Older rosette leaves and stem leaves are pinnately to bi-pinnately lobed. Margins of lobes are armed with short, stiff spines giving leaves a coarse, rough texture when touched. Stem leaves are alternate, sessile and progressively smaller toward the stem apex (Whitsen, 1999),.
Stems: Main stem terminates in one to several short flowering branches: additional flowering branches originate in upper leaf axils.
Impacts
Agricultural: Invades hay fields and rangeland reducing forage quantity and quality. Can be invasive in grass crops grown for seed.
Ecological: Invades disturbed non-croplands and natural areas reducing forage and wildlife habitat.
Habitat and Distribution
General requirements: In the Pacific Northwest this plant is invasive on steep, south facing, grassy slopes.
Distribution: California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Colorado currently has no documented infestations of common crupina.
Historical: Native to the Mediterranean Region.
References
USDA, NRCS. 2005. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov). Data compiled from various sources by Mark W. Skinner. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA
Whitson, T.D.(ed.), L.C. Burrill, S.A. Dewey, D.W. Cudney, B.E. Nelson, R.D. Lee, R. Parker. 5th Edition 1999. Common Crupina. Weeds of the West.
Western Society of Weed Science, in cooperation with the Western United States Land Grant Universities Cooperative Extension Services, Newark CA. pg. 127.
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