WEED ID · SUMMER ANNUAL BROADLEAF

Bitter sneezeweed

Also called Bitterweed, sneezeweed

A bushy summer weed with thread-thin leaves and small yellow daisy flowers. It moves into open, thin, or bare spots and spreads only by seed.

When you’ll see it: Early summer through fall

Large patch of bitter sneezeweed in a sunny open field, with thin thread-like green leaves and many small yellow daisy-like flowers — Photo: Hillebrand Steve, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain

How to spot it

Upright, bushy plant, usually under a foot tall
Leaves are very thin, almost like thread or needles
Stems are purple and branch freely
Yellow daisy-like flowers with a domed center, from summer into fall
Crushed leaves have a bitter smell

Why it shows up

Bitter sneezeweed grows only from seed. It needs open, sunny, bare ground to get started. It shows up in thin turf, along mowed edges, and in disturbed soil. Seed moves with soil, water, and equipment.

How we treat it

We keep your lawn thick with a regular feeding and mowing, since sneezeweed needs bare ground to start. We spot treat young plants with a product labeled for your grass type. The key is to stop it before it flowers and makes seed.

What you can do

Pull or mow it before the flowers open and make seed.
Fill in bare and thin spots in the lawn.
Do not scalp the lawn. Bare soil gives it room to start.

WANT IT HANDLED?

Let a licensed applicator take it from here.

Tell us about your lawn. We’ll get back to you with a free quote.

Prefer to talk? 817-382-1722

Licensed applicator, Texas Department of Agriculture · License #0984138