Myserty Plant Id Question

Question: Hi, 
I was hoping for help identifying a plant that is spouting in abundance in my garden.  It is appearing focused in primarily in spaces where I had dahlias planted last year (there were also some asters nearby).  It is really concentrated in the circles where I dug up the tubers at the end of the season.  I also don't know if its helpful to know that I had different varieties of dahlias in these spaces.   it has roots and not runners.   I have tried a plant id app which gave me inconclusive results.  Is it possible that its a dahlia seedling coming back?  Or just a thriving weed? Many thanks for your help.  Holly

responder: - - - Vermont Extension Master Gardener Volunteer - - -  Replied June 20, 2023, 12:34 PM EDT
response: Hi, Holly,  What a fun inquiry.  It is slightly hard to see if these seedlings are all from the same type of seed (do you have any images or seed husks left?), though many appear similar.  Since Dahlias are opposite-leaved, there is a chance some could be Dahlias, but the cotyledons (the seed leaves or very first leaves to emerge from the seed) do not resemble Dahlia cotyledons, which are more ovate (rounded) and slightly thicker/fleshier than what I see in your photos.  Check out this page for info on how very young Dahlias appear and this one for slightly older seedlings.  Remember, too, that Dahlia stems are hollow, so you can take a clean set of shears and cut a stem open to see if it is hollow.  Speaking of stems, these almost all appear woody, which leads me to my first guess at who they may be -- some sort of Ash tree.  Since you had dug Dahlias from that area last Autumn, the soil was nice and loose, perfect habitat for a rodent to build a stash of food for the Winter.  Look around your gardens/yard/wood's-edge and check out what kind of trees and shrubs you have.  Ash have a long, slender cotyledon, as well.  Check out this great website, GoBotany, which can be a helpful tool in identifying a short list of plants to investigate further, whenever you are trying to identify plants.  If you look at the upper left corner of the page, you'll see I have filled out some info under the bar, "Questions."  You can unclick answers to these questions to see how the program works and broaden your search to include more plants.  Ash trees will typically not develop their compound leaflets until an older age, so you would want to grow these on for more than one season to observe this trait.  Image 8113, may show more than one kind of plant, and my eyes are drawn to the lower left hand seedlings, which may be Dahlia.  You can also try seperating and growing on the seedlings based on how they look (inlcuding the root systems).  Let me know if you have any more questions or observations to share.  Happy sleuthing!! Genica

responder: The Question Asker Replied June 20, 2023, 1:39 PM EDT
response: Thanks so much for getting back to me, Genica!  What a great and thoughtful response.   Sadly, I don't have any seed husks - these self-seeded or had a little help. I do have an ash tree nearby.  And plenty of busy rodents:0.  The stem did not appear hollow on the one I just cut (thanks for this trick).  I will separate them out and keep a few for a while longer.Do the ash tree leaves smooth out (become less serrated) as they mature?  I will try to find some newly emerging ones to look at the initial leaves.  I knew I had to wait until more leaves had developed, but I do want to plant something in those spaces before it's too late.  I would have loved a dahlia bonanza but the ash trees are, perhaps, more important these days.Thanks so much for your help, HollyOn Tue, Jun 20, 2023 at 12:34 PM Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:

responder: - - - Vermont Extension Master Gardener Volunteer - - -  Replied June 22, 2023, 7:12 AM EDT
response: Hi, Holly,  Different species of Ash have varying levels of serration, as well as having variation of traits within a species (just like us).  Remember they are not totally limited to Ash -- you may have other shrubs that are opposite-leaved and quite fertile that had an abundant seed drop last year.  So as you observe the seedlings grow, keep looking for clues to other options or that eliminate current options to who they may be.  I would also suggest you "compost" (aka, perhaps roughly plant in the ground) the rest of the seedlings in a place you will remember so you can observe them grow, too, but without your care in the same way.  If they are Ash, the more the merrier in my book -- gotta keep the genetics going to get through this tough period of demise.  Cheers! Genica