IDENTIFICATION
Regional Noxious. Biennial or short-lived perennial.
White cockle has a fragrant, showy, white flower with five notched
petals. The flower sits atop a large calyx,
or flower covering, that has fused to form a bulb-shape that has many
prominent green veins (similar to night-flowering catchfly). The
leaves are lance-shaped and the stem is woody at the base. The entire
plant is hairy, but not sticky.
DAMAGE
White cockle is a problem in grain fields, alfalfa and clover crops,
and pastures. The seeds contaminate clover and forage seed. It can rapidly
colonize disturbed sites and
compete with native vegetation because of its high rate of seed production.
HABITAT
White cockle grows in cultivated crops (especially legumes and
grains), hayfields, fields, disturbed areas, railroads, and roadsides
at low to mid-elevations in British Columbia. It is present in all agricultural
regions in the province and considered a major concern in the Peace River
region.
SPREAD
White cockle is spread mostly by seed, but root and stem fragments
can establish new plants as well.
