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

Hill country silverbush

silky silverbush, silvery wild-Mercury

Habit Herbs, perennial, monoecious or dioecious, to 5 dm. Herbs, perennial, dioecious, rarely monoecious, to 3.5 dm.
Stems

erect to ascending, hairy, hairs malpighiaceous.

erect, densely hairy, hairs silvery, malpighiaceous.

Leaves

stipules deciduous, linear-lanceolate, to 1 mm, margins not glandular;

petiole absent;

blade elliptic, 1.5–4 × 0.6–2 cm, margins entire, without glands, surfaces hairy, hairs malpighiaceous.

stipules deciduous, oblanceolate or obovate to ovate, 0.2–0.3 mm, margins not glandular;

petiole 1–3 mm;

blade elliptic to ovate, 0.9–4 × 0.4–0.8 cm, margins entire, without glands, surfaces densely hairy, hairs silvery, malpighiaceous.

Inflorescences

unisexual, 3–8 cm;

bracts linear-lanceolate, 2–4.5 mm, margins without glands.

unisexual, pistillate 0.5–1 cm, flowers solitary, staminate 1–2 cm;

bracts ovate to elliptic, 0.4–0.5 mm, margins without glands.

Flowers

without pink dye when wetted.

usually releasing pink dye when wetted.

Staminate flowers

sepals lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 4–5.5 × 1.1–1.4 mm;

petals cuneate-elliptic to cuneate-obovate, 3.3–4 × 1.6–3 mm, free from androphore;

nectary glands oblong, 0.4–0.5 × 0.3–0.4 mm, adnate to androphore, glabrous;

stamens 10, staminodes 0.

sepals linear to lanceolate, 2–5 × 0.3–2 mm;

petals linear-lanceolate, 3–5 × 0.5–0.6 mm, free from androphore;

nectary glands ovate, 0.1–0.2 × 0.1 mm, free from androphore, glabrous;

stamens 10, staminodes 5, punctiform, glabrous.

Pistillate flowers

sepals lanceolate to elliptic, 6–7 × 1.7–3.2 mm, without glands;

petals 0 or 5, linear, 0–1.7 mm;

nectary glands oblong, 0.5 × 0.7 mm, glabrous;

ovary tomentose to lanulose;

styles 1.5–3 mm, tomentose;

stigmas flattened.

sepals elliptic, 3–4.3 × 0.8–2 mm, without glands;

petals 5, lanceolate to linear, 1.5–2 × 0.3–0.5 mm;

nectary glands oblong to linear, 0.8 × 0.5 mm, glabrous;

ovary hispidulous;

styles 1–1.7 mm, pilose;

stigmas flattened.

Capsules

7–9 mm, tomentose to lanulose.

4–5 mm, hairs adpressed, short, silvery.

Seeds

3.7–5 mm, smooth, lightly tuberculate, or striate.

2.3–2.5 mm, finely papillate.

Argythamnia aphoroides

Argythamnia argyraea

Phenology Flowering Jan–Jul. Flowering Apr–Jul.
Habitat Bluestem-grama grasslands, oak woodlands, calcareous, often rocky, clay or loam soils. Shortgrass grasslands or open shrublands on whitish, clay soils.
Elevation 300–600 m. (1000–2000 ft.) 100–400 m. (300–1300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
TX
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Argythamnia aphoroides is restricted to the Edwards Plateau.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

There are very few collections of Argythamnia argyraea, which is endemic to south Texas in Kinney, La Salle, and Maverick counties. Plants of Argythamnia argyraea are usually dioecious, but William Mahler found that larger plants are occasionally monoecious (J. Poole, pers. comm.).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 12, p. 174. FNA vol. 12, p. 175.
Parent taxa Euphorbiaceae > Argythamnia Euphorbiaceae > Argythamnia
Sibling taxa
A. adenophora, A. argothamnoides, A. argyraea, A. brandegeei, A. claryana, A. cyanophylla, A. humilis, A. lanceolata, A. mercurialina, A. serrata, A. simulans
A. adenophora, A. aphoroides, A. argothamnoides, A. brandegeei, A. claryana, A. cyanophylla, A. humilis, A. lanceolata, A. mercurialina, A. serrata, A. simulans
Synonyms Ditaxis aphoroides
Name authority Müller Arg.: Linnaea 34: 146. (1865) — (as Argyrothamnia) Cory: Madroño 8: 92. (1945)
Web links