Have you ever spotted a plant in your garden or neighborhood that made you do a double take? Some flowering plants closely resemble weed (marijuana) due to similarities in leaf shape, structure or flower color. While it may be amusing to find cannabis lookalikes growing in your own backyard, it’s also important to correctly identify these plants to avoid any confusion or legal issues
Here are 8 common flower plants that are often mistaken for weed:
1. Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum)
The young leaves of Japanese maple seedlings look surprisingly similar to marijuana leaves. Both have palmately compound leaves with 5-9 leaflets growing in a hand-like shape from a central point. The edges of maple leaves are also serrated like cannabis leaves.
However, Japanese maple leaves turn vivid shades of red in summer, unlike the consistently green marijuana leaf Maples also grow into woody trees, while cannabis remains a soft, herbaceous annual plant.
2. Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)
However, okra can be identified by its larger yellow hibiscus-like flowers and velvety green seed pods. Okra plants also lack the distinct cannabis bud structure and intoxicating scent.
3. Sweetfern (Comptonia peregrina)
However, sweetfern leaves are alternate rather than oppositely arranged, and the shrubs produce tiny brown flowers unlike the prominent buds of cannabis plants.
4. Texas Star Hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus)
However, the flowers clearly identify it as hibiscus, not cannabis. Texas star hibiscus also has a red woody stem instead of the soft green cannabis stem, and leaves sprout singly rather than in symmetric pairs.
5. Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus)
However, it can be identified by its pale yellow hibiscus-like flowers. Kenaf leaves are also alternate rather than oppositely arranged like cannabis. The stems are also stouter than the typically long, thin cannabis stem.
6. Cranberry Hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella)
7. Cleome (Cleome hassleriana)
However, cleome can be identified by its spiraling columns of showy pink, purple or white flowers and prickly seed pods. The leaves also lack the distinct fan shape of classic pot leaves.
8. Chaste Tree (Vitex agnus-castus)
However, chaste trees can grow over 10 feet tall and produce long clusters of lilac flowers, unlike the smaller greenish flowers of cannabis plants. Crushing the leaves also emits a pungent, unpleasant odor.
Weed or Wildflower? Spring Weeds that Look Like Native Plants
Not everything that pops up in the yard is a weed. Native wildflowers and other desired plants also can readily spread and sprout. And since some of them look like common weeds, it’s important to know the difference before you automatically eliminate them.
Killing native look-alikes by mistaking them for weeds can be detrimental to the ecosystem. Some native plants provide pollen for dwindling pollinator populations, some of them provide food for caterpillars of native butterflies, and some of them serve as natural (and free) soil coverings that prevent erosion.
Eliminating the wrong plants also is a waste of time, money, and effort as well as an unnecessary use of herbicides.
How to tell the difference?
Weeds and desirable plants are often confused because the most noticeable parts – the flowers – often look similar, bloom in the same color, and/or bloom at the same time. A closer look usually fleshes out the difference.
A weed flower, for example, may have a slightly different shape than a look-alike wildflower, or it may have a different number of petals, or the flowers may be arranged differently on the stems. Sometimes the flowers are so different they immediately set apart plants that look nearly identical in habit and leaf. Just be sure to eliminate a weed before its seeds have a chance to mature and drop.
A second identifier is plant leaves. One plant may have larger, wider leaves while the other may have narrower or even needle-like foliage. Or one plant might have leaves coming out opposite one another on the stems while the other has leaves alternating up the stems. Or one plant’s leaf edges might be smooth while the other’s might be “toothy” or jagged.
Other determining clues include the plant’s growth habit (spreading, bushy, upright), where the plant is growing (sun vs. shade, wet vs. dry, disturbed vs. undisturbed soil), how fast or aggressively a plant is growing, and what the plant looks like underground (roots, runners, or bulblets).
Here are six common spring weeds and how to tell them apart from similar native plants:
Creeping charlie (Glechoma hederacea) vs. golden ragwort (Packera aurea). These two ground-huggers have similar heart-shaped foliage, but the flowers quickly differentiate them.
The weedy creeping charlie produces close-to-the-stem lavender flowers while the native golden ragwort produces golden daisy-like flowers.
Creeping charlie also has scalloped leaf edges and a mint-like odor when crushed, while golden ragwort’s leaves are toothed.
Lesser celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) vs. marsh marigold (Caltha palustris). Both of these flower yellow in early spring, grow in moist habitats, and have similar heart-shaped leaves.
The tell-tale difference is that when you dig up lesser celandine (an invasive in more than 20 U.S. states) you’ll find cream-colored bulblets and roots with finger-like tubers. Native marsh marigolds have no bulblets and fibrous roots.
Lesser celandine also is sometimes confused with native wood poppies. The distinction is the yellowish-orange sap that comes out of wood-poppy stems.
Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) vs. cut-leaved toothwort (Cardamine concatenata). Both of these produce clusters of small white flowers in spring. A key difference is that the weedy garlic mustard has triangular, wrinkled leaves and a garlic odor when its leaves are crushed. Native cut-leaved toothwort has narrower leaves and no garlic odor.
Giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum) vs. cow parsnip (Heracleum maximum). These are both large, toothy-leafed members of the carrot family that produce umbrella-like clusters of white flowers in mid to late spring. The weedy and rash-causing giant hogweed has distinctive purple spots on its stems (native cow parsnip does not), the plant is much larger overall and its flower clusters are fuller and bigger than cow parsnip. Giant hogweed can grow to 14 feet tall and its leaves can span five feet with lobes that are deeply incised. Cow parsnip grows to about 7 feet and its leaves are half the size of giant hogweed with more rounded lobes.
Giant hogweed is a hazardous, federally listed noxious weed. Its sap contains phototoxic chemicals. If the sap comes into contact with your skin and then is exposed to sunlight, it can cause severe skin irritation including painful, burning blisters and long-lasting scars. If the plant touches your skin, immediately wash the area with soap and water and protect from sunlight for 48 hours. This plant can also displace native plants. Native cow parsnip is less toxic, but it can still cause a rash or burn. Use caution around either plant.
Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum) vs. wood anemone (Anemone quinquefolia). Both of these produce star-shaped white flowers in early to mid-spring. A key difference is that the weedy star of Bethlehem has narrow, grass-like foliage while native wood anemones have wider leaves with toothy edges.
Creeping speedwell (Veronica filiformis) vs. woodland phlox (Phlox divaricata). Both of these are short, spreading perennials with blue flowers in April and May. The difference is that weedy creeping speedwell has a creeping habit with rounded leaves that alternate up its stems, while the native woodland phlox (also known as creeping phlox and blue phlox) grows in a clump-like habit and has narrower leaves that are opposite one another on the stems.
Read how to control and prevent different kinds of weeds.
When Is Cannabis Flower Ready To Harvest?
FAQ
What plant looks like weed but isn’t?
Chaste Tree – A poplar tree-shrub used in alternative medicine, the purple flowering chaste tree is often misidentified as cannabis.Jun 29, 2023
How to tell if it’s a flower or weed?
A closer look usually fleshes out the difference. A weed flower, for example, may have a slightly different shape than a look-alike wildflower, or it may have a different number of petals, or the flowers may be arranged differently on the stems.
What does a weed plant look like when flowering?
Signs of Flowering
When a marijuana plant flowers, it’s showtime. Buds start to form, pistils emerge, and trichomes (those sticky, shiny crystals) appear. It’s like the plant is dressing up for a big event, and these are its jewels and fancy threads.
What is a plant that looks like weed with white flowers?
Common lawn weeds with white flowers include:
Mouse-ear chickweed (Cerastium vulgatum) Daisy (Bellis perennis) Mayweed (Anthemis cotula) Pearlwort (Sagina procumbens)
What flowers look like weed?
But before reporting a false claim to the police, you simply need to look at its flowers which appear pink, rose, purple, and white: more showy and elaborate than an actual weed. Coral Plant – Native to the Americas and the Caribbean, the coral plant is a striking garden ornamental plant that looks like cannabis.
What do weed leaves look like?
Weed leaves can also be identified by their pistils. These are small, hair-like structures that protrude from the leaflets. Pistils are tan or red in color and aid in plant reproduction by catching pollen from male plants. Cannabis plants also have two different types of leaves: fan leaves and sugar leaves.
Do plants look like weeds?
Plants that look like weeds are deceiving by their looks. Imagine taking a short walk in a natural park and coming across seven-pointed leaves that look like marijuana. Our dear friend, let us tell you, it’s not marijuana. It’s not always true that a plant’s leaves look like those on a stash plant.
What flowers have similar leaf morphology and flowers?
Here are some flowers that often have similar leaf morphology and flowers: Spider Plant: This plant is in the caper family and has one or two-colored flowers. Its leaves are pointing and look a lot like pot plants. But before calling the police on a false claim, all you have to do is look at its flowers, which are pink, rose, purple, and white.
Is spider flower a weed?
People often mistake it for cannabis due to its drug-like appearance and similarity to weed plants. The spider flower is a member of the mustard family and is related to radishes, turnips, and cabbage. It grows best in full sun and well-drained soil. This plant has a long history of medicinal use.
What weed plant looks like a fern?
Two hibiscus species, cranberry and scarlet hibiscus, are included in the list of plants that resemble weeds due to the finger-shaped foliage. However, it can be differentiated by the color and, of course, the characteristics of inflorescence.