Curlytop Knotweed (Polygonum lapathifolium)

Curlytop Knotweed (Polygonum lapathifolium) is also known as Curl-top smartweed and Pale smartweed. 

Member of the Buckwheat family.

Stems - To 2m tall, glabrous.  Leaves - Alternate, glabrous, to 30cm long, 6cm wide, typically lanceolate, with impressed veins on the adaxial surface near the midrib. Ocrea not fringed with cilia and glabrous. Inflorescence - Terminal, loose, panicles and axillary racemes. Each flower cluster to 8cm long(tall), 3-9mm thick, nodding.

 Flowers small (2-3mm long),  creamy white to slightly pinkish, dense in cluster.

Bloom Time: July - October

Where Found: Moist soils, disturbed sites, gravel bars, roadsides, and railroads.

Origin - Found in U.S. and Eurasia. Probably introduced in North America.

 

Notes:  This plant can get quite tall and is easily distinguished by the nodding racemes of the panicle. The leaves sometimes have a dark splotch in the center.