Plant ID please

These things are everywhere at my new place.  I dug up areas of sod, flipped them over, and they grew right up through it.  They are connected underground by pretty thick white roots into what appears to be one big carpet of hatred for me.  They get a couple feet tall.  If I can figure out what they are and whether they spread from seed or only by roots, I can chop them and use them as mulch.  Any help would be great.

One more to show how this spreads.  This is a picture of a small area.  I have huge areas that look like this.

It could be goldenrod. Repeated mowing eventually wears out the rhizome.

But if it is goldenrod, you may want to dry some of it. Some herbal uses.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:It could be goldenrod. Repeated mowing eventually wears out the rhizome.

But if it is goldenrod, you may want to dry some of it. Some herbal uses.

Thanks Joylynn, that does look like it.  I'll watch for the flowers.  I have enough to dry some for everyone on permies I think :)

Looks like whatever it is it will be fun to scythe when you get your scythe

I'd agree with golden rod...once it flowers, of course, it will be clear what it is.

Besides medicinal, the flowers are great for a natural dye.

Judith Browning wrote:Looks like whatever it is it will be fun to scythe when you get your scythe

...

Great minds and all  Can't wait for it to get here.  I'll be scything the heck outta everything.

Looking at the veins of the leaf (which is in total 5) it must be plantain spp. lanceolata. A real medicine chest for skin problems like burns e.tc

BTW, my DW who is the master gardener and plant swami around here says an app called Plant Identifier is very good. Not sure how much personal information it hoovers up, but the tool itself is useful.

Daniel Gélin wrote:Looking at the veins of the leaf (which is in total 5) it must be plantain spp. lanceolata. A real medicine chest for skin problems like burns e.tc

Plantain only ever has basal leaves, not tall stems with leaves all the way up like these.  I thought at first rosebay willowherb (fireweed) but goldenrod sounds like a good bet.

Sounds to me like you have a biomass goldmine!

I agree that this is goldenrod.





I planted goldenrod for it's medicinal qualities.

Solidago virgaurea is used in a traditional kidney tonic by practitioners of herbal medicine to counter inflammation and irritation caused by bacterial infections or kidney stones.[31][32] Goldenrod is also used in some formulas for cleansing of the kidney or bladder during a healing fast, in conjunction with potassium broth and specific juices.[32] Some Native American cultures traditionally chew the leaves to relieve sore throats, and the roots to relieve toothaches.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solidago


I have lots of plantain growing where I live.  It is a different variety from the one mention but it does not look anything like goldenrod.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_lanceolata