Common crupina (Crupina vulgaris)

Stem

• Up to 3 ft. tall and branched with lengthwise ridges along stem

Leaves

• Cotyledons are oblong, fleshy and hairless, often with a purplish midvein; rosette leaves are oval to lance-shaped with smooth, toothed or lobed edges (margins)

• Stem leaves are alternate and deeply pinnate-lobed; lower leaves are larger than upper leaves; edges are covered with short, stiff hairs

Flower

• Pink or purple; occur in clusters of 1-5 at the tips of branches; base of flower is vase-shaped and narrow (3-4 times longer than wide)

Root

• Fibrous

Other

• Grows well under a wide range of environmental and soil conditions; often found in rangeland, pastures, waste areas, roadsides and along waterways; known to occur in Lyon and Storey counties

• Annual; reproduces by seed

• Listed on the Federal Noxious Weed List

Control

• Grazing or mowing can increase branching and seed production and are NOT effective

• Apply 2,4-D, dicamba or picloram to actively growing plants prior to flowering