Weed? ID

[FWishbringer]

Not sure if this is a Florida native, or if its a previous planting run wild. I believed it to be wild sage, but its not quite matching up with the tax keys.

If someone could, ID and safety?

 

[terracolson]

nice photo! i wish i could tell you the weed....

Did you make all A's in school?

 

[FWishbringer]

No, didn't make A's. I did work as a tester for a gaming company in which I had to do a lot of notated screen shots.

No one has been able to identify it? I have a lot of sprouts of it in the yard, as well as a lot of young to adult plants. Its more prolific than the grass and wild lettuce right now. Looks like it remains on the 'better safe than sorry' list. I really wish I knew if it was a plant that was intentionally-planted-by-someone-around-here turned weed or if it is an 'actual' weed.

 

[Tom]

Could you show us a pic of it in the ground? I don't recognize it all wilted up like that.

 

[FWishbringer]

Could you show us a pic of it in the ground? I don't recognize it all wilted up like that.

Ok, three more pictures (finally got my camera working, which can do a lot better quality than the backup camera).

Closeup of the top of a flowering plant.
A cluster of adult plants.
A cluster of young plants.

 

[Yvonne G]

It looks like a member of the fiddleneck family. The actual fiddleneck plant has a flower stalk with flowers that resemble yours, however the stalk goes up then bends over in the shape of a violin's neck. The seed of fiddleneck build up to toxic levels in the kidneys.

 

[Tom]

It looks like a member of the fiddleneck family. The actual fiddleneck plant has a flower stalk with flowers that resemble yours, however the stalk goes up then bends over in the shape of a violin's neck. The seed of fiddleneck build up to toxic levels in the kidneys.

So is it only the seeds that are toxic? My torts found a patch that I missed and Scooter got a few bites of some small emerging plants. No flowers or seeds on them yet.

The plant he's posted doesn't look like the fiddleneck that grows near me. The one near me is Amsinckia douglasiana. Looks like this:

Sorry, I don't recognize this one. Before it gets tall, it almost looks like plantain (the weed).

 

[FWishbringer]

So if I don't allow seeds, it should be ok (based on all available pictures)?

The only thing making me wonder is the seed heads... they are FAR too short on the plant local to me...

I agree with the comment about plantains, as it does look a lot like them at start. Its the way it flowers are arranged that really sets it apart and makes me curious as to its id. I'm really starting to think its something that was planted by a neighbor and run wild, more so than local native to Florida. If its ok, then its going in the enclosure as young transplants... the two days so far we've been over 70F, its what Deasil was after most outside. I've read they tend to browse the selection and can generally choose, if offered a variety, the good stuff (except when its all cut up and stuck on the feeding bowl/dish). We have wood sorrel, which is a STUBBORN weed, and though I kept moving the playpen when the tort got near it, it picked around the wood sorrel the few times it did get close, to get to either the one I'm trying to id, or the grass and wild lettuce.

Can't wait for another month or two to pass... once it warms up, and stays 70F+ regular, I can get my regular stuff going (and move to a more outdoorsie enclosure)

 

[FWishbringer]

Ok, took a sample to Feed Depot, and asked if they could id it (since most of the people there deal with cattle and horses). They said its called corn gromwell. They said its safe for horses and cattle, had no clue when it came to tortoises. Looking up 'corn gromwell', its really close, the only difference being color of flower (yellow instead of white to white-blue). A quick check on Google, and it IS in the same family as fiddlenecks, different genus.

 

[Tom]

Good call for Yvonne.

 

[FWishbringer]

Since I posted as attachements, I'm deleting them to free up space. If anyone needs to see them, I have them stored locally, can photobucket them if asked (which I'll be doing for future pictures), though you could save the effort and search for Corn Gromwell on Google.

As I was told its safe for horses and cattle, and Yvonne only warned of seeds in a related species, I'll add it to my 'safe, with caveats' list.

As a note, the other thing on my 'safe with caveats' list is the wild lettuce which I've been offering. The flower stalks have a high concentration of its latex, which has a bit of a narcotic effect. I only offer the leaves, and pick the flowers out from wherever I put down their playpen outside.