A catalog of Native North American Plants: Polygonum pensylvanicum

Polygonum pensylvanicum

Common name: Pennsylvania smartweed, Pennsylvania knotweed, Bigseed smartweed

Persicaria pensylvanica is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family. It is native to parts of North America, where it is widespread in Canada and the United States. Pennsylvania smartweed is a variable annual herb reaching 10 cm -2m. The upright, ribbed stems are branching or unbranched. It has lance-shaped leaves. The blade may be marked with a dark blotch. The inflorescences grow at the top of the stem and from the leaf axils. The flowers have five pinkish or greenish tepals each a few millimeters long.

This plant grows in moist, disturbed habitat types, such as ponds, reservoirs, riverbanks, irrigated fields, and ditches.

This plant is an important part of the habitat for waterfowl and other birds, which use it for food and cover. At least 50 species of birds have been observed feeding on the seeds

Native Americans have various uses for the plant. The Chippewa use it for epilepsy. The Iroquois use it for horse colic. The Menominee take a leaf infusion for hemorrhage of blood from the mouth and post-partum healing. The Meskwaki use it on bleeding hemorrhoids.

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