Astranthium

Nuttall

Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. 7: 312. 1840.

Common names: Western-daisy
Etymology: Greek astron, star, and anthos, flower, alluding to head as seen from above
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 20. Treatment on page 203. Mentioned on page 11, 17, 204, 205, 351.
 TaxonIllustrator 
FNA20 P21 Townsendia hookeri.jpegTownsendia hookeri
Astranthium ciliatum
Dichaetophora campestris
Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey
Barbara Alongi
Barbara Alongi

Annuals, biennials, or perennials, 5–50 cm (with taproots or fibrous-roots). Stems erect to decumbent, usually branched throughout, sparsely to densely strigose to hirsuto-pilose. Leaves basal and cauline; alternate; mostly petiolate; blades 1-nerved, spatulate-obovate (proximal) or narrower, 1–8 (–12) cm (some clasping to subclasping), margins usually entire, sometimes toothed, faces glabrous or strigose. Heads radiate, borne singly (usually on long, leafless or bracteate peduncles). Involucres campanulate or hemispheric, (3.5–8 ×) 4–8 mm. Phyllaries 15–30 in 2 (–3) series, appressed, midnerves inconspicuous, broadly oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate, subequal, thin-herbaceous, margins often hyaline, faces glabrous or strigose. Receptacles conic, pitted, epaleate. Ray-florets 10–65 (–85), pistillate, fertile; corollas abaxially drying white or with blue to purplish blue midstripe, adaxially white. Disc-florets 25–200 [–250], bisexual, fertile; corollas yellow, tubes much shorter than tubular-funnelform throats, lobes 5, spreading, deltate; style-branch appendages lanceolate-acute. Cypselae (brownish) obovoid to oblanceoloid-obovoid, compressed, 2-nerved (nerves marginal, usually thin, sometimes thick), faces smooth, striate, or papillate-pebbly, and glabrous or glochidiate-hairy; pappi 0 or coroniform (of setae or scales to 0.1 mm). x = 3, 4, 5.

Distribution

c United States, Mexico

Discussion

Species 12 (3 in the flora).

Astranthium is characterized by its herbaceous habit, heads borne singly on long peduncles, subequal phyllaries in 2–3 series, conic receptacles, white or blue rays, tubular disc corollas, and flattened, papillate cypselae with coroniform or no pappi. Apically glochidiate cypsela hairs have each apical cell abruptly reflexed in opposite directions. The species are separated by small but consistent morphologic differences, often accompanied by differences in chromosome number. All but three of the species are known only from Mexico (D. C. D. De Jong 1965; J. Rzedowski 1983).

Vegetatively and florally, Astranthium is similar to the monotypic Dichaetophora, which has the same chromosome number (2n = 6) as northern species of Astranthium. Epappose species of Erigeron may be superficially similar to Astranthium (D. C. D. De Jong and G. L. Nesom 1982); they are distantly related.

Key

1 Plants fibrous-rooted; cypsela faces glabrous or glochidiate-hairy only distally Astranthium integrifolium
1 Plants taprooted; cypsela faces uniformly glochidiate-hairy > 2
2 Ray florets (7–)13–24; disc corollas 2–3 mm; cypselae 1–1.6 × 0.6–0.8 mm, faces minutely striate, otherwise nearly smooth, rarely papillate-pebbly Astranthium ciliatum
2 Ray florets 18–35; disc corollas 3.2–3.8 mm; cypselae 1.4–2.1 × 0.7–1.2 mm, faces minutely, glandular-papillate-pebbly Astranthium robustum

"narrower" is not a number."[" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property."]" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Astranthium"
not tailed +, rounded +  and obtuse +
distinct +
subequal +
scarious +
usually triangular +  and linear +
usually deltate +  and lanceolate +
spiciform +, racemiform +, paniculiform +  and corymbiform +
indeterminate +  and determinate +
Guy L. Nesom +
Nuttall +
decurrent +
8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br /> (12 cm120 mm <br />0.12 m <br />) +
spatulate-obovate +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (8 cm80 mm <br />0.08 m <br />) +
rugulose +  and muricate +
barbellulate +  and barbellate +
Western-daisy +
not 2-lipped +  and actinomorphic +
yellow +, white +  and with blue to purplish blue midstripe +
beaked +, 2-ribbed +  and 5-ribbed +
compressed +, obovoid +  and oblanceoloid-obovoid +
fertile +  and bisexual +
fertile +  and bisexual +
c United States +  and Mexico +
Greek astron, star, and anthos, flower, alluding to head as seen from above +
glochidiate-hairy +, glabrous +  and strigose +
striate +
pistillate +, staminate +  and neuter +
winged +  and beaked +
dispersed +
indeterminate +
heterogamous +  and homogamous +
each +  and sessile +
hemispheric;campanulate +
cauline +  and basal +
deltate +
inconspicuous +
broadly oblanceolate +  and linear-lanceolate +
blue +  and purplish blue +
2-carpellate +
coroniform +
Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. +
bearing subulate enations +, hairy +  and bristly +
de1965a +
exalbuminous +
erect +  and decumbent +
strigose +  and hirsuto-pilose +
appendaged +  and truncate +
papillate +  and smooth +
Compositae +
Astranthium +
Asteraceae tribe Astereae +
tubular-funnelform +
perennial +, biennial +  and annual +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (50 cm500 mm <br />0.5 m <br />) +
tree +, shrub +  and subshrub +
5 +, 4 +  and 3 +