I hear tell that’s it’s probably a mullien plant. It (and several like it) were growing in the fields at Pea Ridge National Miliary Park, which isn’t too far from my parents’ house in NW Arkansas. Pea Ridge was a major battle in the western theater of the U.S. Civil War, but since the western theater didn’t amount to much, it’s a bit of a big fish in a small pond. It’s a nice little park, though, and we have had several excellent visits over the years. Several of us went out the day after Christmas, which is where this (and several other photos) came from.
