Grazing in Michiana
Continuing the series for The Farmer's Exchange, I plan on bringing you a monthly edition of my "Pasture Plant Profiles." I will focus on one less-talked-about plant commonly found in pastures in the Great Lakes region and beyond.
In this series, I will focus on if that plant is invasive or not, what it adds to the pasture landscape/how livestock utilize it, and some cool and interesting history about the plant I am profiling for the month.
For the month of January we will be looking at an irritatingly common pasture/crop weed that can be a scourge to those who know it, Velvetleaf.
Growing easily and quickly to an impressive height of 5-8 feet, velvetleaf has a strong, stout stem that is fibrous and tough and covered in downy soft hairs. Velvetleaf is an annual plant that grows during the warmer seasons, germinating in the spring and flowering in the summer.
Velvetleaf's leaves are large and heart-shaped with pointed tips at their ends, which grow alternately at different points along the length of the stem and are also covered with soft, downy hairs. The leaves, when crushed, release a strong odor.
The plant's flowers are yellow and grow up to an inch in diameter, with five petals attached at the base. Flowers grow on stalks and can either be found in clusters or individually where the stalk meets the leaf stem.
Pod-like capsules produced by the plant consist of 12-15 wood segments that form cup-like rings. Through the maturation of the seeds, the segments remain joined, and upon maturation, the mature seeds are released through vertical slits on the outside of the capsule.
Originally from what is believed to be the Yellow River valley of China, velvetleaf is now considered one of the most prevalent invasive weed species in crop fields around the world to this day. Since it germinates and matures around the same time that most conventional grain crops are reaching maturity, velvetleaf is considered an extremely damaging weed to most grain-producing countries such as the United States, Canada and parts of Eastern Europe.
Since being introduced in the United States in the early 1830s, most likely in imported goods from China, velvetleaf has become a problematic species in agricultural regions of the eastern and midwestern United States. It is one of the most detrimental weeds to corn, causing decreases of up to 34% of crop yield if not controlled and costing hundreds of millions of dollars per year in control and damage.
Velvetleaf is an extremely competitive plant, so much so that it can steal nutrients and water from crops exactly at their point of maturity when those grain crops need it most.
Velvetleaf is also a frequent host plant to funguses, viruses and insects that are detrimental to production crops. Velvetleaf has been found to host Verticillium Wilt fungus, Corn Earworm, Tobacco Budworm, Soybean Seed Decay Fungus and the Turnip Mosaic Virus.
When destroyed, velvetleaf releases a strong chemical odor that is also known to be harmful to surrounding crops when released into the soil. This chemical inhibits the germination of crop and pasture seeds like corn and grasses.
In order to eradicate velvetleaf, individual plants should be dug up or pulled out manually and not tilled or plowed to avoid seed germination.
Velvetleaf is one of the few plants that I will actively seek out and pull from my pastures. While it is not known to be toxic to animals, most livestock will avoid it, most likely because of the smell released when damaging the plant and its tough fibrous stem and leaves.
Smaller livestock and small wildlife such as chickens, rabbits and mice may eat the seeds that are produced at a rate of 700 and 44,200 seeds per plant, but have been shown to provide little nutritional value.
Velvetleaf has been grown in China since around 2000 BC for its strong, jute-like bast fibre. The plant is known as Maabulha in the Maldives, and its leaves were part of the traditional Maldivian cuisine, usually finely chopped and mixed with Maldives fish and grated coconut in a dish known as Mas Huni. The seeds are eaten in China and Kashmir.