Weed ID?

[ramblingrabbit]

Does anyone know what this weed is? It grows all over our place. It survives among the grasses and other weeds in the lawn, where it stays tiny and low to the ground, but in spots that aren't mowed in can get to be knee high or higher. Usually has one main stem, with larger plants developing a number of stems, which are always uniformly thin and green, becoming quite tough and fibrous with age, leggy and somwhat sprawling. The leaves can vary greatly in size depending on the conditions, but always have the same shape. As you can see, the flowers are tiny yellow things that develop close in to the base of the leaves. It seeds itself readily and profusely, and can take over small areas opportunistically if there is no competition from grasses or other ground cover. I've combed multiple picture archives of "common weeds of Hawaii" without finding any matches.

I never thought much of it until recently. The chickens won't ever touch it, so it's kind of taken over parts of the chicken pastures. And it has kind of a strong, odd smell, and it always seemed somewhat coarse, invasive, and unremarkable, and certainly didnt strike me as highly palatable. But recently I had some rabbits in a grazing pen, and I noticed that whenever the pen was moved to a new area, this was one of the first things they would choose to eat--they greatly prefer it over the grass, and like it almost as much as the clovers. I'd like to find out the Latin name for it so I can do more research if possible. It would be nice to learn about its fodder potential and any toxicity issues, so that I might cut some for the herd in the future. I do have quite a lot of it around...

Thanks!<br /><br />__________ Mon Oct 28, 2013 8:24 am __________<br /><br />Anyone?

 

[Dood]

Sorry, Hawaiian plants are not my forte and it doesn't look like anything around me.

Perhaps take a sample to a local garden center and ask for help. They should have an idea about local plants, weeds and invasive species.

 

[Wheels]

Is it this? http://www.starrenvironmental.com/images/image/?q=090331-5470&o=plants

Synedrella nodiflora (node weed, Cinderella weed)

I've never seen it before - I just like to google and this seems like a good match.

 

[ramblingrabbit]

Thanks Wheels! Synedrella nodiflora is a match! That was all I needed--I owe ya one!

Apparently it's found as a weed in HI, FL, and in tropical climates around the world, being native to the New World tropics.

I did some searches for fodder usage. Apparently it is commonly used in some places, at least for goats. This one page (http://proseanet.org/prosea/e-prosea_de ... t=&id=1319) says "Synedrella nodiflora has been cultivated in trials in Benin, as fodder for rabbits." Jackpot! Another article about goat fodder plants in Nigeria gives nutritional values: http://www.ilri.org/InfoServ/Webpub/ful ... pter30.htm. According to the chart on that page, it has a crude protein content of about 22% and a crude fiber of around 14%, which sounds pretty decent, and would compare favorably to lots of other common forages.

Awesome! Now I have a good use for all the patches of it that crop up in disturbed soil areas, instead of just weed-wacking it.

 

[Wheels]

Cool beans - I'm glad you can put it to use!