Edge/ Horseweed

COMMON NAME: Horseweed

OTHER COMMON NAME(S): Hogweed, Bitterweed, Canada Fleabane,

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Conyza canadensis

FAMILY: Asteraceae

COMMUNITY: Edge

STATUS: Native

LIFESPAN: Annual or winter-annual

HEIGHT: 4 to 60 inches

FLOWERING TIME: Late July to late October

FRUITING TIME: September to late October

DISTRIBUTION: Throughout the United States as a weed ~ Statewide in New Jersey but infrequent in central Pine Barrens

IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS: Leaves numerous, lance shaped, coarsely ciliate, toothed, smaller at top ~ Ray flowers white to pink

GENERAL INFORMATION: This large family (Asteraceae), commonly called the Aster Family, consists of 1,314 genera and 21,000 species of herbs, shrubs, climbers and a few trees is found chiefly in temperate and subtropical regions.  The plants are of value to man as ornamentals; a few are insecticides and fish poisons. In the early 1800s, Rafinesque writing about medical flora in the United States discussed Horseweed and wrote “I highly recommend these plants to medical attention.  They were known to the northern Indians by the name of Cocash or Squaw weed as emmenagogues and diuretics, and are often employed by herbalists.  They may be collected for medical use at any time when in blossom.”  Oil of Canada Fleabane (another common name for Horseweed) has been used in diarrhea, dysentery, and internal hemorrhages.  The oil was included in the USP (United States Pharmacopeia). Horseweed is a weed found in disturbed dry waste places ground and old fields.

Please note: While harvesting wild berries/fruit is permitted at Island Beach State Park, visitors must adhere to park regulations at all times and must not damage vegetation or go off designated trails.  This information is presented for educational purposes.