Flowers and young fruiting bodies. Photo: Kevin Thiele, WA

Fruiting bodies. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: RG & FJ Richardson, Balranald, NSW

Fruiting body. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: RG & FJ Richardson, Balranald, NSW

Fruiting bodies and leaves (some fruiting bodies circled). Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Plant. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Common Name

Spiny Emex; Three Corner Jack; Doublegee; Cape Spinach; Jackie; Prickly Jack; Goat-heads; Devil Face

Family

Polygonaceae

Notes

Introduced annual forb, prostrate or sprawling, sometimes to 40cm tall.  Leaves alternating along the stems, with a membranous stipule at the base forming a sheath around the stem, 3-9cm long, 15-70mm wide, flat, hairless, the edges more or less finely scalloped, with blunt tips.  Male and female flowers on the same plant.  Female flowers with 6 spreading perianth segments tipped with sharp spines. Flowers tiny (less than 3mm across), with 6 spreading perianth segments, the perianth segments of female flowers tipped with very sharp rigid spines. Flowers in clusters at the bases of the leaves.  Fruiting bodies hairless, with 3 rigid, spreading spines.  Declared plant SA.  Noxious weed Vic.

Description and photo in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales page 229.

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Emex~australis