Erect plants, usually with long tap roots. The fleshy to leathery leaves form a basal rosette at the root. The basal leaves may be different from those near the inflorescence.
Tall, erect, tap rooted perennial, smooth stemmed, without side branches. Basal leaf blades longer than wide, tapering, rough wavy margined. Flowers in whorls of 10 to 25 on branched terminal stem, dense or interrupted at base, branches usually straight.
Habitat
Moist soil along streams, roadsides, ditches and in pastures.
Flower Characteristics
Small greenish flowers occur in dense whorls on the upper portion of a elongated stem, consisting of tepals (sepals and petals) that become reddish-brown with age.
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Lance-shaped, wavy-curled margins, alternate on stems, mostly basal to 1 foot long. Lower basal leaves are petioled, without hairs, alternately arranged on the stem. Stem leaves are arranged alternately along the stem.
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
A small hard dry fruit, 1/8 inch long, that is triangular, glossy, and brown to reddish-brown. A papery 3-valved or 3-winged structure surrounds the fruit.