weed that snaps and shoots out its seed when touched? (in Georgia)

[so lucky]

My mother called bittercress 'touch me not' because after it's flowered, it will shoot seeds all over the place if you try to pull it then. The best way to get rid of it is to pull it in the early spring before it flowers. It can't shoot seeds then. It's really a nuisance for me, and I'm after it already this year.

There is also an annual flower that is nicknamed "touch-me-not" I think maybe it is balsam? And don't impatiens seed pods pop like that too? Must be a pretty efficient way of spreading yourself around.

 

[wsmoak]

The evil things are back again this year! They bloom and go to seed before you can even *think* of getting out there to pull them. :/ Oh, well, they're tilled under now, seeds and all.

-Wendy

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Wsmoak, I think what you have there is the annual wildflower called "touch-me-not" or Jewelweed. Are the flowers orange or yellow (with a kind of spotting inside)? Stalks green with a red blush? If you break a stalk is it hollow in the middle and is the sap of a clear color? Water droplets on the plants will sparkle like jewels on a sunny day, hence the name "Jewelweed." The seedpods do snap open when you brush up against them which actually make them fun to play with. Naturally raindrops are supposed to trip the snapping mechanism in the pods so the seeds will get rain right away, but a person or animal brushing up against them will cause it too. I live in an extensive wetland in a valley, we have those growing all over the place, my garden is further upland. They grow anywhere east of the Mississippi River. Rubbing the sap on the skin will take the itch out of bug bites and Poison Ivy/Oak and Stinging Nettle and heal the infected area (just make sure to lay the sap on thick).

 

[wsmoak]

Wsmoak, I think what you have there is the annual wildflower called "touch-me-not" or Jewelweed. Are the flowers orange or yellow (with a kind of spotting inside)? Stalks green with a red blush?

If you look back at the first post on page 1, there is a photo of the flowers -- they are white. I'm pretty sure it's bittercress, though it probably has multiple names.

-Wendy

 

[kathiesgarden]

There is also an annual flower that is nicknamed "touch-me-not" I think maybe it is balsam? And don't impatiens seed pods pop like that too? Must be a pretty efficient way of spreading yourself around.

I am sure you're right about the flower. I call 'bittercress' 'touch me not' because that's what my mother called it. Maybe it's one of those regionalisms that was discussed in an earlier thread??
Glad to finally know the correct name for it.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

The Jewelweed does not have white flowers, so it's probably Bittercress. I've never seen Bittercress before so don't know what they look like. (Your pictures didn't work for me for some reason.) Glad that you finally know what it is! (Don't put the sap on your skin, some plants' saps amplify UV rays from the sun and can badly burn your skin. I'm pretty sure now that your plant is not the Jewelweed that I mentioned.) You're probably right on it being a regionalism Kathie.

 

[bills]

Huh..Never tried eating it before..that's a new one. Might have to do a test tasting, before adding it to a salad..just in case..

I notice my hens don't seem overly fond of it, least compared to the other weeds I toss to them.
I've always called that weed "spring"..lol It is one of the first to show in the spring, and the seeds spring, when touched. Seemed like an appropriate name for it..
Thankfully, they are really easy to pull, root and all, but you need to do it early, or they can really spread.