My neighbors have this problem, a weed. They have a weed that grows up beside their house, in the same place, every year. This is one of the largest weeds I have ever seen, and it is pretty much impossible to get rid of. I have tried finding out what species it is, I think that it is Phytolacca americana, otherwise known as pokeweed. Varitations of it grow in South America and New Zealand. It does grow small purple berries on it and has a hairless stem with some red in it. These plants can grow as high as 10 feet. Right now the plants are at about 7 feet.

Some people use these plants for decorative purposes. The leaves can be eaten although they must be boiled twice to remove toxins, as the entire plant is poisonous to mammals. Thousands of berries are produced, and birds eat them then the seeds come out the other end, which is why these plants pop up just about anywhere.

The berries were used in the past to produce magenta pigment, and they are usually what is responsible for coloring bird droppings magenta.

After repeated cutting, the plant easily grows back. It comes up every year (due to the berries falling back on the ground), and in the past there was only one or two stalks, this year there are four stalks, all about one inch in diameter.

It grows at least 3 inches per day! What it is growing in I am not sure of because all of the soil here is nothing but clay, vegetables DO NOT grow without compost!

There you have it...an all-inclusive, fourth-grade level report on Phytolacca americana!