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false goldeneye, golden-eye

Habit Annuals, perennials, subshrubs, or shrubs, (2–)20–500 cm. Annuals or perennials, (2–)10–90(–120+) cm.
Stems

erect, branched distally or ± throughout.

Leaves

usually mostly cauline, rarely mostly basal; mostly opposite (distal often alternate) or mostly alternate, rarely whorled;

petiolate or sessile;

blades (often 3- or 5-nerved) orbiculate or deltate to lanceolate or linear (and intermediate shapes), sometimes lobed, ultimate margins entire or toothed, faces usually hairy (often hispid to scabrellous), often gland-dotted.

mostly cauline; opposite or alternate;

sessile or subsessile;

blades usually 1(–3)-nerved, elliptic, lance-linear, lanceolate, lance-ovate, linear, ovate, rhombic, or rhombic-ovate, margins entire (often revolute), faces hispid or strigose to stigillose, sometimes gland-dotted.

Involucres

cylindric to hemispheric or rotate.

hemispheric or broader, 6–14 mm diam.

Receptacles

usually flat or convex, sometimes hemispheric or conic, usually paleate (epaleate in Lagascea; paleae usually falling, sometimes persistent, mostly oblong to linear, often conduplicate, herbaceous to scarious, apices sometimes ± 3-lobed or -toothed; becoming hardened perigynia completely investing cypselae in Sclerocarpus).

conic;

paleate (paleae tan to brown, ovate to oblong-rectangular, conduplicate).

Ray florets

0 or 5–30(–100+), neuter, or styliferous and sterile;

corollas usually yellow to orange, sometimes partly or wholly brown to purple or red-brown to reddish.

5–15, neuter;

corollas yellow (laminae elliptic, oblong, obovate, oval, or ovate).

Disc florets

1 (Lagascea) or 10–200(–1000+), bisexual, fertile;

corollas usually yellow to orange, sometimes brown to purple or reddish to red-brown, tubes shorter than or about equaling cylindric or funnelform throats, lobes 5, ± deltate (equal);

anther thecae dark or pale;

stigmatic papillae usually continuous.

25–50+, bisexual, fertile;

corollas yellow, tubes shorter than campanulate throats, lobes 5, triangular (style branches relatively slender, apices acute).

Phyllaries

persistent, 4–45(–100+) in 1–6+ series (usually distinct, ± connate in Lagascea, broadly ovate to linear, subequal or unequal).

persistent, 14–25 in ± 2–3 series (mostly lance-linear, herbaceous).

Calyculi

0.

Heads

usually radiate, sometimes discoid, borne singly or in corymbiform (paniculiform or racemiform) arrays (glomerules or second-order heads of 1–2-flowered heads in Lagascea).

radiate, borne singly or in cymiform to paniculiform arrays.

Cypselae

often ± compressed, flattened, biconvex, clavate, columnar, obovoid, obpyramidal, or prismatic (lengths usually 1–2 times diams.), glabrous or hairy (faces and/or angles);

pappi 0, or (often readily falling or fragile, sometimes persistent) usually of (1–)2(–8+) (sometimes aristate) scales and/or awns, sometimes coroniform.

(black, mottled, or gray-striate) weakly 4-angled, ± obpyramidal (glabrous);

pappi 0.

x

= 8.

Asteraceae (tribe Heliantheae) subtribe Helianthinae

Heliomeris

Distribution
Mostly subtropical; tropical; and warm-temperate New World
from USDA
sw United States; Mexico
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Genera 17, species 363 (8 genera, 69 species, including 1 hybrid, in the flora).

Circumscription of Helianthinae adopted here (i.e., that of H. Robinson 1981) is narrower than traditional circumscriptions (e.g., T. F. Stuessy 1977[1978]), which included genera here treated in Ecliptinae, Galinsoginae, and Rudbeckiinae.

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

Species 5 (4 in the flora).

Heliomeris has often been submerged within Viguiera; herbaceous phyllaries, epappose cypselae, and distinctive chromosome base number provide morphologic and genetic features that correlate with molecular phylogenetic studies to suggest that it be recognized as distinct. A species from granite outcrops of the southeastern United States, Helianthus porteri, shows remarkable morphologic similarity to Heliomeris, but cytologic, crossing, and molecular phylogenetic studies have provided abundant evidence that it is properly placed in Helianthus. W. F. Yates and C. B. Heiser (1979) provided a useful summary of Heliomeris, and their treatment is followed here.

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

Key
1. Phyllaries 4–5 in ± 1 series (connate); disc florets 1(–2; the 1–2-flowered heads aggregated in glomerules or second-order heads)
Lagascea
1. Phyllaries 5–45(–100+) in (1–)2–6+ series (distinct); disc florets (10–)15–200(–1000+)
→ 2
2. Receptacles paleate (each palea completely investing and falling with a cypsela, eachforming a hardened perigynium)
Sclerocarpus
2. Receptacles paleate (paleae sometimes conduplicate, ± enfolding cypselae, not forming perigynia)
→ 3
3. Heads borne singly (peduncles usually distally dilated, fistulose)
Tithonia
3. Heads borne singly or in corymbiform, paniculiform, racemiform, or thyrsiform arrays (peduncles rarely, if ever, notably dilated or fistulose)
→ 4
4. Cypselae flattened, thin-margined
Simsia
4. Cypselae ± compressed, biconvex, or 3- or 4-angled, often obpyramidal
→ 5
5. Cypselae glabrous or glabrate; pappi 0
→ 6
5. Cypselae usually ± strigose, sometimes glabrous or glabrate; pappi of 2–6+, persistent, readily falling, or tardily falling scales
→ 8
6. Shrubs (leaves often lobed, lobes usually 3–9, ± linear)
Viguiera
6. Annuals or perennials (leaves not lobed)
→ 7
7. Annuals; leaf blades lanceolate to linear; involucres 5–6 mm diam.;phyllaries 11–17
Helianthus
7. Annuals or perennials; leaf blades lance-linear, lanceolate, ovate, rhombic, or rhombic-ovate; involucres 6–14 mm diam.; phyllaries14–25
Heliomeris
8. Shrubs; involucres 5–9 mm diam
Bahiopsis
8. Annuals or perennials; involucres (5–)7–40+ mm diam
→ 9
9. Pappi readily falling
Helianthus
9. Pappi persistent or tardily falling
Viguiera
1. Annuals; leaf margins conspicuously ciliate at least 3/4+ their lengths (hairs often 0.5+ mm)
H. hispida
1. Annuals or perennials; leaf margins ciliate to 1/4 their lengths (hairs to 0.5 mm)
→ 2
2. Annuals; leaf blades (at least proximal) ovate to rhombic-ovate, abaxial faces not gland-dotted; peduncle lengths 2–5 times leafy portions of stems
H. soliceps
2. Annuals or perennials; leaf blades (at least proximal) elliptic, lanceolate, lance-linear, lance-ovate, linear, or ovate, abaxial faces often gland-dotted; peduncle lengths 1/20–1/2 leafy portions of stems
→ 3
3. Perennials (caudices woody), proximal and midstem leaves relatively broad (lengths 2–8 times widths)
H. multiflora
3. Annuals (taprooted) or perennials (caudices woody), proximal and midstem leaves relatively narrow (lengths 6–30+ times widths)
→ 4
4. Annuals (taprooted), proximal and midstem leaves (40–)80–160 × 4–8(–12)mm
H. longifolia
4. Annuals (taprooted), proximal and midstem leaves 10–70(–85) × 1.5–5 mm, or perennials (caudices woody), proximal and midstem leaves 10–90 × 2–20 mm
→ 5
5. Annuals (taprooted, stem branching symmetric), proximal and midstem leaves 10–70(–85) × 1.5–5 mm, heads relatively small, involucres 6–9 diam
H. longifolia
5. Perennials (caudices woody, stem branching often asymmetric), proximal and midstem leaves 10–90 × 2–20 mm, heads relatively large, involucres 6–14 mm diam
H. multiflora
Source FNA vol. 21, p. 135. FNA vol. 21, p. 169. Treatment author: Edward E. Schilling.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Helianthinae
Subordinate taxa
Bahiopsis, Helianthus, Heliomeris, Lagascea, Sclerocarpus, Simsia, Tithonia, Viguiera
H. hispida, H. longifolia, H. multiflora, H. soliceps
Synonyms subtribe Lagasceinae Viguiera section H.
Name authority Cassini ex Dumortier: Fl. Belg., 71. (1827) Nuttall: Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 4: 19. (1848)
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