cudweed Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun any of numerous plants of the genus Gnaphalium having flowers that can be dried without loss of form or color
  2. noun any plant of the genus Filago having capitate clusters of small woolly flower heads
    cotton rose; filago.
  3. noun perennial cottony-white herb of southwestern United States
    Artemisia ludoviciana; western mugwort; prairie sage; white sage; Artemisia gnaphalodes.

WordNet

Cud"weed` noun
Etymology
Apparently fr. cud. + weed, but perh. a corruption of cottonweed; or of cut weed, so called from its use as an application to cuts and chafings.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A small composite plant with cottony or silky stem and leaves, primarily a species of Gnaphalium, but the name is now given to many plants of different genera, as Filago, Antennaria, etc.; cottonweed.

Webster 1913