[Illustration: MANY-FLOWERED BUCKWHEAT]
Leaves usually alternate; sepals 3-6, sometimes petal-like; petals
absent; stamens usually 6-9; ovary 1-celled.
Many-Flowered Buckwheat (_Eriogonum multiflorum_) is also called
umbrella-plant because of its spreading clusters at the top of the stem.
It grows about 2 ft. high, being very abundant in sandy soil from
South-central Texas to Arkansas and Louisiana in the late summer and
fall. The name means “woolly knees,” referring to the jointed stems.
Buckwheat flour is made from the seeds of _Fagopyrum esculentum_, a
closely related plant, similar in size, white-flowered, and with large
3-angled seeds. Queen’s crown or wreath (_Antigonon leptopus_), a lovely
pink-flowered vine widely cultivated in Texas, is a member of the
buckwheat family.
Annual Buckwheat (_Eriogonum annuum_), similar to the many-flowered
buckwheat, but with leaves white-woolly on both sides and narrowed at
the base, is very abundant in the northwestern part into New Mexico and
Mexico. Acre after acre along the highways is often covered with it.
Many other white-, yellow-, and red-flowered buckwheats are found in the
mountains of West Texas.
[Illustration: SOUTHERN SMARTWEED]
Southern Smartweed (_Persicaria longistyla_), ranging from Mississippi
to New Mexico is also called gander-grass or knotweed. It grows in wet
places throughout the state and blooms in the late summer and fall. The
dense spikes of small pink flowers are very attractive, the flowers
having 5 pink sepals but no petals. The seeds are lens-shaped and
covered with a black shining coat. The seeds of many of the smartweeds
are considered good food for ducks.
Dotted Smartweed (_Persicaria punctata_) has scattered greenish-white
flowers and 3-angled seeds. The leaves are much narrower than those of
the Southern smartweed. Many other smartweeds are found in the state.
Curly-Leaved Dock (_Rumex crispus_), as well as several other docks, is
common in the state. The leaves of some of them are used for greens.
Canaigre is the dock of Western Texas and New Mexico, the roots of which
have furnished tannin for commercial purposes.