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Habit Foliage Flower Seed pods Seedlings Roots Host for aphids
Seed pods on bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) are called
siliques. Each silique generate about 30 seed, and each bittercress
plant can generate up to 5000 seed per plant (Bachman and Whitwell, 1995,
SNA Proceedings, pg.288-290).
Bittercress are generally easy to control with preemergence herbicides.
However, because one weed can generate so many seed, failure to
use or properly time herbicide applications can result in rapid infestation.
This is why bittercress tends to be more problematic in propagation
(where herbicides are not used) and during overwintering.
A silique is defined as "a dry, dehiscent fruit of the Cruciferae,
typically more than twice as long as wide, with two valves separating
from the persistent placentae and septum." (Harris and Harris, 2001,
Plant Identification Terminology).
Notice the number of siliques (seed pods) on a single bittercress plant.
It is easy to see how these plants can quickly infest a container
yard.
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