Tarweed Fiddleneck Amsinckia
Other Common Name(s):
Previously known as:
- Benthamia
- Phonetic Spelling
- am-SINK-kee-uh
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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Amsinckia, or Fiddleneck, is a genus of bristly, flowering annual plants in the Boraginaceae family. The common name is derived from the gray-green flowering stems laden with goldenrod yellow blooms that bend and curl like the end of a fiddle. The genus contains about a dozen different species that are often difficult to distinguish from one another because their ranges overlap and the species often hybridise naturally.
Most species in the genus have an erect stem, whose height varies from 8 to 48 inches and most are found at relatively low altitude.
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems:
No known insect pests or diseases. However, contact with the plant's sharp hairs can cause contact dermatitis. The seeds and leaves of fiddlenecks have pyrrolizidine alkaloids that are poisonous to livestock including horses.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Amsinckia
- Species:
- Amsinckia
- Family:
- Boraginaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Stems, seeds and leaves were used as food source by Native Americans.
- Life Cycle:
- Annual
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Western North America, South America
- Distribution:
- Europe. Western North America.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Annual
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Coarse
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Fruit Type:
- Nut
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- Tiiny basal gray nutlets
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Orange
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Spike
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Long Bloom Season
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Funnel
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Five petaled dark golden yellow to orange funnel-shaped flowers in scorpionoid spikes 2 to 15 inches long with leafy bracts at the base. Flowers bloom all spring into the summer.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Prickly
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Oblanceolate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Description:
- Basal alternate gray-green narrowly oblanceolate entire margins leaves covered in bristly hairs.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Hairy (pubescent)
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Landscape:
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Moths
- Problems:
- Contact Dermatitis
- Problem for Horses
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Poisonous to Humans:
- Poison Severity:
- Low
- Poison Symptoms:
- Contact with the plant's sharp hairs can cause dermatitis. The seeds and leaves of fiddlenecks are poisonous to livestock and horses.
- Poison Toxic Principle:
- pyrrolizidine alkaloids
- Causes Contact Dermatitis:
- Yes
- Poison Part:
- Leaves
- Seeds
- Stems
