Re: Seed ID Help

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Mark Mayfield

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Sep 16, 2025, 3:29:19 PM9/16/25

to Scott Fritz, Herbarium Google group

Hi Scott,

I examined the vial of material you dropped by. The contents consisted of a mixture of seeds and various plant stem fragments. I found 5 different species among the seeds/fruits.

The most prevalent were two grass seeds. The abundant, dark brown elliptic seeds are Digitaria sanguinalis (crabgrass). An Echinochloa species (barnyard grass) is somewhat less abundant, straw colored, shaped more like a teardrop. The third most abundant in the sample are seeds of smartweed (Persicaria sp.), which are rounded in outline but flat or three-sided. In about the same abundance were the dark obovoid achenes of annual ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), not enclosed in their bur-like involucres. There was one other seed I wasn't able to positively identify, but I think it is a legume, like Melilotus or maybe Desmodium.

Let me know if you have any questions, and whether I should keep the seeds to return to you.

Best, Mark

Mark H. Mayfield
Division of Biology
1717 Claflin Rd.
Manhattan, Kansas 66506-4900
785-532-2795 (voice)

Office: 304 Bushnell Hall

From: Scott Fritz <scott...@vet.k-state.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2025 11:58
To: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Subject: Re: Seed ID Help

I dropped a small bag off with my name on it in the wooden box in the hallway.

Scott

Scott Fritz DVM, PhD, DABVT

Clinical Assistant Professor of Toxicology

Veterinary Toxicologist

Kansas Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory

College of Veterinary Medicine

Kansas State University

785-532-0120

From: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2025 9:53:44 PM
To: Scott Fritz <scott...@vet.k-state.edu>
Subject: Re: Seed ID Help

CAUTION:[This email is from a sender outside of KSUCVM]

Hi Scott,

I have some ideas, but I can't confirm anything from the images. Would it be possible to drop some off at the herbarium for me to examine tomorrow?

Mark

Mark H. Mayfield
Division of Biology
1717 Claflin Rd.
Manhattan, Kansas 66506-4900
785-532-2795 (voice)

Office: 304 Bushnell Hall

From: Scott Fritz <scott...@vet.k-state.edu>
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2025 16:14
To: Mark Mayfield <mark...@ksu.edu>
Subject: Seed ID Help

Hi Mark,

I hope the semester is going well. I'm hoping you can help me ID the seeds from the attached images. One type is roughly 1x2 mm and black, sort of shaped like sunflower seeds but much smaller. The others are bigger, maybe 3 mm across but seem to have three sides/faces.

The submission is from West Virginia, but I've been unable to contact the submitter to get a more targeted location.

I had a hard time not getting blurry pictures on seeds that small.

Thanks in advance.