Urtica gracilis

Urtica gracilis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Urticaceae
Genus: Urtica
Species:
U. gracilis
Binomial name
Urtica gracilis
Synonyms
  • Urtica dioica subsp. gracilis (Aiton) Selander
  • Urtica dioica var. gracilis (Aiton) Roy L.Taylor & MacBryde

Urtica gracilis, commonly known as the slender nettle, tall nettle, or American stinging nettle, is a perennial plant without woody stems that is well known for the unpleasant stinging hairs on its leaves and stems. It is native to much of North America from Guatemala northwards and temperate areas of South America. It is easily confused with the visually very similar Eurasian species Urtica dioica and is still listed in some resources as a subspecies of this plant. However, genetic analysis and experiments show that they are genetically distinct.