Wild buckwheat (Black bindweed)
Fallopia convolvulus
Plant family: Polygonaceae (knotweed family)
Life cycle: Annua
Reproduction: Seed
Leaves: Leaves are alternate, almost heart-shaped and pointed at the apex. The leaf base has deep and rounded to pointed lobes. At the base of each leaf, a cylindrical, membranous sheath (ocrea) surrounds the stem. Leaves are can be up to 3.5 inches long.
Roots: Fibrous root system. Regeneration does not occur from roots.
Flowers: Individual flowers are small and inconspicuous (less than 0.5 inches in length). There are no petals, only sepals that are white to pink to green in color. Flowers are held in small clusters in leaf axils or at the end of stems.
Seeds: Seed are 3-angled and short-lived.
Fast-growing annual
Wild buckwheat, also known as black bindweed, is a fast-growing annual vine with fragile stems in the Polygonaceae (knotweed/smartweed family). The root system of wild buckwheat is composed solely of fibrous roots. Unlike the perennial bindweeds, reproduction does not occur from root fragments.