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Plant identification #752649

Asked May 28, 2021, 12:20 AM EDT

What is this plant, and is it invasive? I'm a volunteer helping to care for an abandoned 19th century cemetery in Leakin Park. We're weeding invasives (like the mile-a-minute and garlic mustard also in the pictures) and we don't know what to do with this plant. Many of them are affected by a white coating (fungus?) that leaves them looking yellow and sickly. Thank you!

Baltimore City County Maryland

Expert Response

This looks like Hackelia virginiana, which is native to Maryland. Typically the reproductive parts of a plant are needed for identification: flowers, fruits, seeds. If you want, you could leave some of these to produce flowers and then we can take another look to see if it's a match. https://www.marylandbiodiversity.com/view/2272 

Christa

Answered by the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC), University of Maryland Extension. For timely gardening information and tips, subscribe to our Maryland Grows blog and quarterly newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Replied May 28, 2021, 2:20 PM EDT
The plant is beginning to flower with very small white blossoms at the end of long stems.
The lowest leaves of the plant look like blackened ash.
image

It’s hard to tell what’s what in this picture. The flowers of the plant are in the upper right
quadrant. Following the main stem down you see the bottom leaves are black like burned
ashes.
image

On May 28, 2021, at 2:20 PM, Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:

The Question Asker Replied July 02, 2021, 9:19 PM EDT

Yes, this does indeed look like Hackelia virginiana, which is native to Maryland. https://www.marylandbiodiversity.com/view/2272

We are not sure what causes the blackened leaves. There is no research information that I could find on diseases or pests of this plant. They might have some leafhopper damage, but the top growth looks very healthy. 

If your goal is to remove invasive plants, this is not an offending one, but it is really up to you if you want to pull it or keep it. The flowers do have value for some types of bees and the plants are deer-resistant. This page is from Illinois but has some information about the plant and its faunal associations. https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/stickseed.htm 

Christa

Answered by the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC), University of Maryland Extension. For timely gardening information and tips, subscribe to our Maryland Grows blog and quarterly newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Replied July 06, 2021, 10:33 AM EDT

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