Ohio Noxious Weed Identification – Week 18 Wild Mustard

Wild Mustard

FamilyMustard, Brassicaceae.

Habitat: Wasteland, roadsides, grain and other fields crops, primarily in northern Ohio.

Life cycle: Annual annual or summer annual.

Growth Habit: 1-2 feet high, branched and erect.

Leaves: Alternate, 2-7 inches long. Lower leaves have petioles and are irregularly lobed and toothed with bristly hairs; upper leaves are smaller and may not be lobed; petioles lacking or short.

Stem: Branched near top, bristly.

Flower: June – October. 1/2 inch, bright yellow, four-petal flowers borne in small terminal clusters.

Fruit: Slender, slightly curved, smooth seedpod about 1 inch long; borne on upper branches.

Similar plantsThe yellow rocket looks similar but has rounded lower leaves that are more heart shaped.

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Palmer Amaranth

Palmer Amaranth 

Palmer Amaranth has been found in Knox County.

Watch this video for more information.

Palmer Amaranth is on the Ohio Noxious weed list.

Check back for more videos discussing identification and control of this devastating weed!

A big thanks to our co-workers in Delaware County for making this video available!

Checkout other videos on our YouTube Channel.

Ohio Noxious Weed Identification – Week 17 Wild Carrot

Wild Carrot

Family: Parsley, Apiaceae.

HabitatDry fields, wastelands, pastures, and no-till field crops.

Life cycleBiennial, forming a rosette the first year and producing flowers and seed in the second.

First Year Growth Habit: A basal rosette.

Second Year Growth Habit1-3 feet tall, branched and erect.

Leaves: Alternate, pinnately compound, finely divided and hairy.

Flowering StemTall, hairy, stout, and branched.

Flower: June – October (second year). Small, lacy white 5-petaled flowers in flat-topped, umbrella shaped clusters with one dark reddish-brown flower in the center. Flower closes up and turns brown as it matures.

Root: Fleshy taproot.

Similar plants: Leaves have the appearance and odor of a garden carrot. Wild carrots taproot is not as large as the garden carrot. The plant also resembles poison hemlock (Conium maculatum). However, wild carrot has a hairy stem while poison hemlock has a smooth stem with purple blotches. The dark floret in the center of the inflorescence in second year and a distinctive carrot smell in the first year will also help distinguish this common weed.

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Does Crabgrass Really Hate You?

Originally posted on the Sheep Newsletter, By: Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Educator, Noble County

You may have heard the rumor that crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis) hates you. Those who profit from the sale of lawn care products may like you to believe that, but despite the claims, it really isn’t true. Each year crabgrass works toward accomplishing the goal of all living things, to reproduce, and if it had a life motto, it might be something like “Life is short, so live it!” Any plant out of place can be considered a weed and in the eye of many, crabgrass fits this description. However in a forage system, crabgrass can be the right plant, in the right place, at the right time.

Forage type crabgrass – ‘Quick-N-Big’

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Poison Hemlock is in Full Flower and Towering over Fields and Landscapes in Ohio

Orginally posted on Buckeye Yard and Garden onLine- June 1, 2018, By: Joe Boggs

Poison hemlock (Conium maculatum) is one of the most lethal plants found in North America.  This biennial weed is now in full flower throughout much of Ohio.  So, the clock is ticking on preventing seed production by this non-native invasive plant.

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4-H & Friends Fun Day

Join us on Sunday, June 24, 2018 from 3 – 6 p.m. for a 4-H & Friends Fun Day to educate about 4-H, raise awareness, and raise funds for the new 4-H Center.  This is being sponsored and/or supported by the Knox County Farm Bureau, Knox County Cattleman’s Association, the Columbus Zoo, The Knox County Chamber of Commerce, and Jagger Auctioneers.

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An Important Piece of Fire Prevention on the Farm

Originally posted in the Ohio AgriAbility Newsletter- Lisa Pfeifer – OSU Ag Safety and Health Education Coordinator

Do you have fire extinguishers located on your farm property?

Fire extinguishers can often be one of those out of sight out of mind tools. Or alternatively, extinguishers can be so frequently passed by that the location no longer registers. Stop and take a mental inventory of where the fire extinguishers on your farm are located.

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Hay and Straw Barn Fires a Real Danger

Orginally posted in the Ohio AgriAbility Newsletter- Jason Hartschuh, Mark Sulc, Sarah Noggle and David Dugan,Ohio State University Extension Guest Contributors

We’ve heard of one barn fire here in Ohio this morning and a lot of hay was put up last Thursday ahead of the rain. Much of the hay was wetter than it should have been for safe dry hay storage. Watch those moist bales very carefully for the next two to three weeks! Use a hay temperature probe and monitor the internal temperature of the hay during these first three weeks after baling.

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