Nettle Identification

Warning

• The leaves and stems of nettles are covered with tiny hairs. These hairs cause painful stinging and skin irritation when touched. When the nettles are dried, they lose their sting.

Identification

• Nettles grow 3 to 6 1/2 feet tall on average but reach 9 feet tall in fertile soil. The nettle leaves are deeply lobed with three to five long tips and a heart-shaped base connected to a short leaf stem. Nettle flowers are tiny green-white blossom clusters. Nettles produce male and female flowers on the same plant. The male blossoms grow on a longer flower spike than female flowers.

Significance

• Small circular fruit follows the fading blooms. The fruits are covered with tiny hairs and split open when ripe. One nettle plant produces more than 20,000 seeds. Songbirds are attracted to nettles since their seeds are a source of food.