Thanks Jay. Read up on it. It's outside the fence and our dogs wouldn't touch and we have no kids nearby so maybe I'll leave it. Depends on size.

It doesn't look like pokeweed to me.

I had that thought as well. I couldn't find any young pokeweed pics to see.

It seems like to could be a woody plant.

Not Pokeweed. For reference, I have some on the property (not mine) behind me —

Young:

Month later (it’s bigger now, can’t get a good pic because nasty Kudzu is so thick back there now):

Here is another close up pic.

Whatever the plant is (but not Pokeweed), it's covered with aphids! That may explain the shine.

Should I dig it out and get rid of it?

Whatever the plant is, I would be more concerned with getting rid of the giant ragweed, which is bad for people with alergies.

I also think it is a woody plant. If it's doing no harm and you want to id it try us again when it's grown a bit. I also agree that the shine is due to honeydew excreted by the aphids.

The ragweed is not the OP's. It's in the photos of examples of pokeweed posted by Miz_G.

I don't don't mind being wrong, and usually I am, but it would be nice to hear a scentific explaination as to why the plant is not pokeweed rather than " duh, it's not pokeweed". Are some of you promoting ignorance just to maintain your elite status? These are my pokeweeds, and it is possible the plant looks different, depending on which part of the country it's growing in. Aphid damage can alter a plant's appearance drastically.

Jay 6a Chicago

“I don't don't mind being wrong, and usually I am, but it would be nice to hear a scentific explaination as to why the plant is not pokeweed rather than " duh, it's not pokeweed". Are some of you promoting ignorance just to maintain your elite status?”

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Wow, Jay. I was simply posting a couple of pictures for reference, not as a “Duh” statement or to offend you! I don’t have a “scientific” explanation, just that the OP’s plant doesn’t look like Pokeweed to me. They also said they weren’t able to find a pic of a young one, so I posted for them to see. Promoting ignorance? Elite status? What does that even mean? You can disagree without getting rude and combative. We’re all here to help each other (and for me, mainly learn). It’s not a contest.

How it is stretching, this almost looks like a vining plant. Could someone more familiar with them say whether or not this is one of the bittersweets?

It's been growing fast and I'll post more pics as it gets bigger. Thanks everybody.

Looks quite like a crape myrtle to me.

Thats interesting because there are 2-3 c. Myrtles within a few feet that were planted before we moved in that I've been wanting to remove because there is so much shade and they aren't doing well.

It doesn’t look like my young bittersweet. Leaves don’t look shaped quite right and look more leathery than bittersweet, and my bittersweet vine tips start doing a characteristic curling or twirling of the tips quite early.

Hi Everyone,
It is a crepe myrtle. Congrats to the crepe myrtle vote. I didn’t look close enough the first time but an old myrtle stump is just below the surface and that’s where this new growth is coming from.

Can I transplant it to a sunny spot? The myrtles in this area of the yard have been there for many years and aren’t doing well. I cut them back 2 years ago. Not much sun. Just curious as to how much of the root ball I need to dig up. I assume cool weather is the time to do it. Thanks

Yes, they looked like stump sprouts. If the root mass is not too big dig and re-plant when plant is not in leaf.

Or keep cutting the sprouts until the sprouting stump wears out, buy a crape myrtle at a nursery for the sunnier spot.

"When the plant is not in leaf." Not sure what that means. Those shiny leaves are going to drop? I assume fall is the safe time to try the transplant.