Tumbleweed Taproots

small seedling Russian Thistle - 9 cm ( 3 inches)

small Russian Thistle - 22 cm ( 8.5 inches)

medium Russian Thistle - 25 cm (10 inches)

large Russian Thistle - 29 cm (11.5 inches)

Now that I've blipped this I think it was a dumb idea to show you the taproots of weeds that I've been systematically removing to the trash, but the differences in the same plant at various stages of growth are weirdly interesting (especially after doing this for 3 hours in the hot sun). Let's just blame it on the too much sun, okay?

Did you notice how thick the large taproot was? I know that it was growing for more than one season! Just comparing that to the seedling and knowing that it was further back on the lot and less likely for me to have noticed it for some time.