Texas Cooperative Extension Text and images copyright © Richard
Duble. Buttonweed (Diodia virginiana) is becoming an
increasingly troublesome weed in lawns, golf courses and other
turfgrass areas. Buttonweed is found through the Southeastern
states and is particularly well adapted to low, wet areas. In
Texas, it is a serious lawn problem in the eastern half of
Description. Buttonweed is a warm season perennial with a
sprawling, widely branched growth habit. Leaves are opposite,
margins slightly serrated, oblong or nearly linear, generally 2
to 3 inches long and leathery in texture. Leaves often develop a
purplish color. The plant has an extensive root system and
develops underground rhizomes. The plant produces small, white
flowers during the summer and fall. Fruit develop along the
stolons, or stems, in summer and fall. Fruit are oval shaped
with vertical ridges and usually 6 to 10 mm long. The fruit
develops into leathery pods in rows along the stolons and give
the plant its name, buttonweed. Plants develop