Ambrosia cordifolia – Tucson Bur Ragweed

Ambrosia cordifolia - Tucson Bur Ragweed, Tucson Burr-Ragweed, Sonoran Bursage

Ambrosia cordifolia - Tucson Bur Ragweed, Tucson Burr-Ragweed, Sonoran Bursage

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Ambrosia cordifolia

Synonym: Franseria cordifolia

Common Names: Tucson Bur Ragweed, Tucson Burr-Ragweed, Sonoran Bursage

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial

Growth Habit: Shrub, Subshrub

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Desert, Upland. It is usually found in the mountain foothills and in sandy washes.

Flower Color: Yellowish tan, Yellowish green

Flowering Season: Spring

Height: To 2 feet (61 cm) tall or more

Description: The staminate (male) flower heads are clustered at the tips of long flower spikes, and the pistillate (female) flower heads are clustered below them. The flowers are wind-pollinated and are followed by fuzzy, spiny burs. The leaves are petiolate, mostly alternate, heart-shaped, coarsely toothed and lobed, silver-veined and light green in color above, and densely covered in silvery white hair below. The stems are upright, hairy, and silvery white in color.

Special Characteristics

Allergenic – The male flowers have highly allergenic pollen.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae – Aster family
Genus: Ambrosia L. – ragweed
Species: Ambrosia cordifolia (A. Gray) Payne – Tucson bur ragweed

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map