Butterweed

Butterweed, Cressleaf Groundsel

Packera glabella (Poir.) C. Jeffrey
(formerly Senecio glabellus)

Asteraceae (Sunflower Family)

▲ seedling

▲ ▼ first year fall rosettes

▲ rosette leaves

▲ ▼ mature plants

▲ ▼ flowers

▲ ▼ reddish or pinkish stems on mature plants

▲ reduced leaves on flowering stems

hollow stem ▲

▲ reduced tillage field in Illinois in early May with heavy butterweed infestation

Butterweed, Cressleaf Groundsel:

Winter annual or biennial weed from China with upright, growth habit topped with clusters of bright yellow flowers
Grows 1-4 feet tall, with deeply lobed basal leaves that become smaller on flowering stem; leaves often have a reddish color or tint
Stems are hollow
Found in moist, fertile, reduced tillage fields throughout central midwest; a few weeds can reproduce by seed to fill a field in a few years (see photos), although impact of weeds on fallow fields is not known