Pokeweed sightings surge as its berries ripen this week
iNaturalist Community
Native Plants
The towering plant with magenta stalks and drooping purple-black berries popping up along your fence line or in that weedy lot down the street is pokeweed, and knowing it on sight matters because every part of it is toxic to people and pets even though birds eat the berries all season long.
American pokeweed is a native plant that shoots up several feet tall each summer and produces clusters of dark purple berries on bright pink-red stems. Right now it's showing up everywhere on nature-tracking apps because late August is peak berry season, and the plant's bold color combo makes it easy for even casual observers to spot and photograph. Birds love the berries and spread the seeds far and wide, which is part of why you'll find pokeweed popping up in yards, roadsides, and forest edges seemingly overnight.
Key Findings
1,008 research-grade observations of American pokeweed logged in a single week on iNaturalist
The species ranked among the most-observed plants on the platform this week
Timing aligns with the plant's late-summer fruiting period, when purple berries and pink stems peak in visibility
chevron_right Technical Summary
American pokeweed is having a big moment on iNaturalist, with over a thousand sightings logged in a single week. That spike signals late-summer fruiting season, when this tall, purple-stemmed plant becomes impossible to miss.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Trending: American pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) — 1008 observations this week
American pokeweed is among the most observed plant species this week with 1008 research-grade observations.
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Species Mentioned
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Phytolacca americana, also known as American pokeweed, pokeweed, poke sallet, pokeberry, dragonberries, pigeonberry weed, and inkberry, is a poisonous, herbaceous perennial plant in the pokeweed family Phytolaccaceae. This pokeweed grows 1 to 3 metres. It has simple leaves on green to red or purp...