# ID a common garden weed? (Yes, pics) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 19, 2017, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103 "2017-08-19T16:41:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/1 "2017-08-19T16:41:59Z")
I have a feeling this is an easy one, but I canNOT find a definite identification. I’m in north Texas. Plant has no flowers that I’ve ever seen, and small, soft oval leaves with silvet-gray undersides set as opposite pairs. Curious if it’s edible (to people OR livestock) and if it’s native etc. Thanks. 🙂 [https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/721b914cd7d5e5babdc12a6426664cbb.jpg](https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/721b914cd7d5e5babdc12a6426664cbb.jpg) [https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/4b6c66c9e2dc90625aefdf9ca37e7a10.jpg](https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/4b6c66c9e2dc90625aefdf9ca37e7a10.jpg) [https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/5648e8bdbb2c51ebc7c91888747fc036.jpg](https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170819/5648e8bdbb2c51ebc7c91888747fc036.jpg) tip-tapping away by phone, but why would you care? ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/2 "2017-08-19T18:14:01Z")
I don’t know what it is but we have a lot of it in our yard (NE Kansas). It’s a spreading weed, kinda like crabgrass, and if you break the stem a milky white sap oozes out, right? ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/3 "2017-08-19T18:20:50Z")
My wife is the plant expert. She did some googling and says it is spotted spurge or prostrate spurge. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/4 "2017-08-19T18:22:03Z")
Spurge. Spotted spurge is real common in Southern California. I hate that shit! Damn! Ninja’ed! ---
**Author:** ![jerez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c68b51/32.png) [@jerez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jerez)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/5 "2017-08-19T18:23:47Z")
Is it a succulent? The stems look juicy like that. I was going to suggest purslane, but your plant has opposing leaves and purslane doesn’t. Some of the many species of spurge look similar. ETA: As suggested above. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/6 "2017-08-19T19:17:49Z")
Ah, didn’t realize there’s a few species if spurge. I saw spurge on a few “Weed ID” webpages but images i found on subsequent googling didn’t match up. tip-tapping away by phone, but why would you care? ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-common-garden-weed-yes-pics/794103/7 "2017-08-19T19:18:50Z")
Not succulent. The stems are slightly woody, in fact. tip-tapping away by phone, but why would you care?