Hi
I found a few of these stalks in a damp shady spot of my garden and was worried about Japanese Knotweed, although it lacks the purple color. Any ideas? Thanks!

One thing for sure, that is not a Japanese knot weed. Japanese knot weed is not a woody plant. in which the mystery plant is.
I crop the picture above

The mystery plant seems like a shrub, or tree sapling, a woody entity with opposite leaves.
I do not know what that is, when it leaves out it might be easier to ID with leaves, but it reminds me of Privet (Ligustrum sp), it could be many other thing though.
Please compare to cropped capture image from https://www.zahrada-cs.com/fot...

Looks like an Ash seedling - Fraxinus sp.

I was thinking privet or lilac.

I agree with ViburnumValley.
Maybe Fraxinus excelsior ...common name Ash tree.
The brown buds are typical of Ash.

tofitropic said: One thing for sure, that is not a Japanese knot weed.

The burgundy leaves look like the leaves coming out on my pawpaw trees...
We'd need to see what the leaves became to identify for certain.

Is pawpaw opposite though?

Is maple in play?

Ash
Ash
Ash

Opposite arrangement of buds rule out alternate arrangement species like Pawpaw.

(Edit here on 3/31/24: change bud scar to the correct term leaf scar)
Leaf scar very much indicates Ash, a good separator from Maple species - as does the morphology of that terminal bud.

I think John thinks its an Ash tree.

So it seems.

Good morning all! I hope everyone is having a happy and blessed Easter today, whether you celebrate or not.

I was going back through this thread today to read the new comments, and began to question what I think I know about such things. You all make me question whether the sun rises in the east!



I was re-reading posts, and the second image provided on 3/26/24 by tofitropic made me do a double take. Instead of realizing it was a different species Ligustrum vulgare provided for comparison, I mistook it to be another closeup view of the seedling in question. This image clearly shows a very different morphology for the leaf scars on the Privet, which appear shelf-like extending from the stem/twig. Compare this to the flatter shield-like appearance on the seedling initially presented, which approximates a half-circle in shape, and what prompted me to ID this seedling as a member of Fraxinus sp.

SO: I went to my 3/27/24 post, reread it, reviewed the pictures, confirmed my opinion was correct BUT edited my 3/27/24 post to use proper terms. I urge all who like to identify plants to spend a little time on the dormant features and get to know their idiosyncrasies.

In my career, it was imperative to know your Ash from some itinerant hole in the ground - or the unscrupulous among us would sell you as many of them as they could unload instead of the American Beech, or Bur Oak, or pick-your-other-select-plant that is hard to find that you really wanted, but were unable to discern in dormant season when you must make these selections/purchases in growers' fields.

That was a run-on stream-of-consciousness sentence if I ever saw one. Apologies to Joy Famularo (high school English teacher), wherever you are.

Point being: at least try to learn the details of plant parts, especially the ones you see everyday in your landscape. It is valuable here, when assisting others with their landscapes, and in life. The "leaflets three, leave it be" saying is only good and helpful when Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is in leaf! The plant still provides its malignant distress through the dormant season, and it creates havoc for those who don't or cannot recognize its viney self wriggling through garden beds; climbing amongst favored vines and shrubs; or remaining clinging to tree trunks and bark even to the point of being brought into homes to be used as firewood.






There I go again...