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Photographer: Merel R. Black
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Family Hypericaceae
Hypericum perforatum L.
common St. John's-wort, Klamath-weed, St. John's-wort
Hypericum: ancient Greek name derived from hyper, "above," and eikon, "picture," from old practice of placing flowers above an image in the house to ward off evil spirits at the midsummer festival of Walpurgisnacht, which later became feast of St. John
perforatum: perforated, with the paired leaves joined at the base and thus 'perforated' by the stem
Hazardous 
Invasive - Eradicate!
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| Status: | Introduced - naturalized; ecologically invasive |
| Plant: | erect, perennial, 2'-3' tall forb with many leafy branches; stems with a sharp ridge below the base of the leaves |
| Flower: | yellow, 5-parted, 5/8"-1" wide, stalked, petals with black dots near the edges; inflorescence a many-flowered, rounded to flat, compound, branched cluster (cyme); blooms June-Sept. |
| Fruit: | 3 chambered capsule  |
| Leaf: | stalkless, small, 1/4" wide  |
| Habitat: | disturbed sites, fields, roadsides |
| (Glossary) |
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