fireweed
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fire·weed
(fīr′wēd′)n.
1. Any of various plants of the genus Epilobium, especially E. angustifolium (syn. Chamerion angustifolium), having long, terminal, spikelike clusters of pinkish-purple flowers. Also called willow herb.
2. Any of several weedy North American plants of the genus Erechtites in the composite family, having small white or greenish flowers grouped in discoid heads.
[So called because the plants are pioneer species in areas where fire has destroyed other vegetation.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
fireweed
(ˈfaɪəˌwiːd)n
1. (Plants) any of various plants that appear as first vegetation in burnt-over areas, esp rosebay willowherb
2. (Plants) Also called: pilewort a weedy North American plant, Erechtites hieracifolia, having small white or greenish flowers: family Asteraceae (composites)
3. (Plants) an Australian rainforest tree, Stenocarpus sinuatus, having whorls of bright red flowers
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
fire•weed
(ˈfaɪərˌwid)n.
any of various plants, as the willow herb, appearing in recently burned clearings.
[1775–85, Amer.]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Noun | 1. | ![]() Epilobium, genus Epilobium - large widely distributed genus of herbs and subshrubs of especially western North America and Arctic areas willowherb - a plant of the genus Epilobium having pink or yellow flowers and seeds with silky hairs |
2. | fireweed - an American weedy plant with small white or greenish flowers genus Erechtites - coarse herbs with whitish discoid flower heads and silky pappus weed - any plant that crowds out cultivated plants |
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