The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Flett's groundsel

serpentine groundsel, Siskiyou butterweed, western ragwort

Habit Plants perennial, 10–40+ cm; rhizomes horizontal to erect. Plants perennial, 7–15 cm; caudices fibrous-rooted, relatively slender.
Stems

1 or 2–5, loosely clustered, glabrous or leaf axils sparsely pubescent.

1, glabrous or sparsely tomentose.

Basal leaves

blades obovate to ovate or sub-lyrate, bases tapering;

margins deeply dissected or pinnatifid, crenate to crenate-dentate, petiolate.

blades ovate, oblanceolate, or spatulate, bases tapering, sometimes obtuse;

margins entire, subentire, or dentate, petiolate.

Cauline leaves

lower similar to basal; middle and upper absent or abruptly reduced distally, sessile.

lower similar to basal; middle and upper abruptly reduced and bract-like, sessile and clasping.

Involucres

campanulate to broadly cylindric.

cylindric;

bractlets narrow, red-tinged.

Ray florets

5 or 8;

rays 5–10 mm.

(8)13;

rays 6–10+ mm; deep yellow.

Disc florets

20–30+;

corolla tubes 2.5–3.5 mm;

limbs 2.5–3.5 mm.

35–50+;

corolla tubes 2.5–3.5 mm;

limbs 3–4 mm.

Phyllaries

(8)13, 4–7 mm, light green;

tips yellowish;

surfaces glabrous.

(13)21, green;

tips red or dark red;

surfaces densely tomentose basally.

Calyculi

0 or inconspicuous.

conspicuous.

Fruits

1–1.5 mm, glabrous;

pappi 4–4.5 mm.

1.5–2 mm, glabrous;

pappi 5–6 mm.

Heads

4–10+; in subumbellate; cyme-like arrays, radiate;

peduncles glabrous;

bracts absent or inconspicuous.

1–4+; in corymb-like arrays;

peduncles densely lanatetomentose;

bracts red-tinged.

2n

=40.

=46.

Packera flettii

Packera hesperia

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Exposed slopes, rocky or gravelly soils. Flowering Jun–Jul. 300–1100 m. CR. WA. Native.

In Oregon, P. flettii is known only from the Coast Range and is rarely collected there. It is also rare in Washington but has a much wider distribution. This species has a unique chromosome number for the genus (2n=40) and is not known to hybridize with other species.

Serpentine, open woodlands. Flowering Apr–Jun. 300–1400 m. Sisk. CA. Native.

Until collections of this species were made in Del Norte County in California, Packera hesperia was known only from two counties in southern Oregon. It has since been listed as a species of conservation concern in California.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 322
Debra Trock
Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 323
Debra Trock
Sibling taxa
P. bolanderi, P. cana, P. eurycephala, P. hesperia, P. macounii, P. porteri, P. pseudaurea, P. streptanthifolia, P. subnuda
P. bolanderi, P. cana, P. eurycephala, P. flettii, P. macounii, P. porteri, P. pseudaurea, P. streptanthifolia, P. subnuda
Synonyms Senecio flettii Senecio hesperius
Web links