What is this funky plant?

[DixyDoodle]

We were out clearing some long grass out by the pond and my son found this weird-looking plant. Aside from what you see, there were no other leaves or anything attached to the stalk. He asked me what it is, and I have no clue!



Hopefully the pic turns out. Basically, it's a bright green with those curly 'leaves' and large spiky balls (about an inch wide each). The balls are firm and the spikes very sharp. Overall, the plant is very coarse and tough. I assume it's some sort of reed grass. It was growing amongst the cattails and wild grass along the water's edge.

Any ideas?

DD

[DixyDoodle]

Yikes, guess the pic turned out, sorry for it being huge! Kinda looks like a plant from another planet, doesn't it?

DD

[Natalie11]

may be a young horse chestnut tree.??????

[catahoula]

Looks like jimson weed or thorn apple to me, really pretty flowers but very very poisonous.

[Natalie11]

http://www.floridata.com/ref/f/fagu_gra.cfm

beechnut tree i thinks.

[tillandsia]

I think it is bur-reed, Sparganium erectum.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SPER
http://images.google.com/images?q=%2...ndsp=20&tab=wi

[fordson major]

not canary grass! its just way tall! nutsedge would be my guess but unsure how big this spike ball is

[Cyngbaeld]

Originally Posted by DixyDoodle

Yikes, guess the pic turned out, sorry for it being huge! Kinda looks like a plant from another planet, doesn't it?

DD

Go to your photobucket acct and click on 'edit' above the photo, then resize to 50% and it will reduce the picture size here.

[marvella]

how big is it? i sort of looks like sweet gum balls.

[Ravenlost]

It's not sweetgum, horse chestnut or jimson weed. My vote is bur-reed or a relative of bur-reed.

[DixyDoodle]

Ravenlost, that looks very close, doesn't it? I think we might have a winner?

What do the burrs turn into? A flower?

DD

[tillandsia]

The burrs are the fruits.

[Ravenlost]

Here's a couple good websites with more info:

http://www.pathologyimagesinc.com/wi...d/burreed.html

http://aquat1.ifas.ufl.edu/spaame.html

...fruits are achenes with beaks...

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/pl...tions/spa.html

[WolfWalksSoftly]

Cool....I found one of those last year and wondered what it was. Inside the spike ball are seeds that come out after the ball is dried.