Common Bugseed

Description

Plants usually branched from base, (5-)15-40 cm, glabrous or sparsely covered with dendroid hairs (especially when young). Leaf blades narrowly lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or linear, flat or nearly so, 2-5(-7) - 0.2-0.6 cm. Inflorescences usually compact, rather dense, or sometimes - lax, condensed only near apex, ovoid, oblong-ovate, obovate, broadly linear, or occasionally clavate. Bracts ovate-lanceolate, narrowly ovate-lanceolate, almost ovate, or lanceolate, (1-)1.5-2.5 - 0.3-0.7(-0.9) cm. Perianth segment 1, sometimes absent in distal flowers. Fruits usually black (rarely deep olive green, especially when immature), sharply contrasting with greenish semitransparent wings, without spots and warts, slightly convex abaxially, flat or slightly concave adaxially, orbiculate-obovate to almost orbiculate, broadest near middle (or occasionally slightly beyond), 3-4 - 2.7-3.8 mm, shiny; wing translucent, thin, (0.2-)0.3-0.6 mm wide, margins slightly undulate or indistinctly erose-denticulate, apex rounded or occasionally indistinctly notched.