Redstem filaree

August 10, 2015

Erodium cicutarium (L.) L’Hér. ex Ait

Life cycle

Prostrate, fernlike winter annual or biennial.

Leaves

Leaves are hairy and compound with deeply cut leaflets that give a featherlike or fernlike appearance. Leaves initially develop from a dense basal rosette and stem leaves are opposite and sparse. Leaves usually have a grayish tinge.

redstem filaree rosette
Redstem filaree rosette.

Stems

Hairy, semi-erect stems arise from a prostrate, basal rosette.

Flowers and fruit

Pink or purple flowers with five petals are found clustered at the ends of long stalks. Fruit are long, beaklike capsules with five sections; each section contains a seed with a spirally twisted, corkscrew tail at maturity.

redstem filaree seed redstem filaree flowers & fruit
One-sided fruit section of redstem filaree (left). Redstem filaree flowers and fruit (right).

Reproduction

Seeds.

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