Common Name: giant knotweedScientific Name: Polygonum sachalinense F. Schmidt ex Maxim. syn. syn. Fallopia sachalinensisFamily Name: Polygonaceae - Smartweed or Buckwheat FamilyIdentification NotesLife Cycleintroduced perennial, reproducing by seed and extensive rhizomes Stemsupright, tall, smooth, noticeably jointed, hollow between nodes, reddish-purple mottling, ocrea (papery or membranous sheath) at nodes Leavesalternate, ovate, tip pointed, heart-shaped base with rounded basal lobes Flowersgreenish-white, unisexual, petals absent; panicle clusters; axillary Seed Podstriangular, 3 "wings"