Pluchea foetida
Pluchea baccharis
stinking camphorweed
rosy camphorweed
(often dark purplish) arachnose, glandular.
puberulent to sparsely villous and stipitate- to sessile-glandular (sometimes viscid).
sessile;
blades (thick, reticulate-veined) oblong to elliptic, lance-ovate, or ovate, mostly 3–10(–13) × 1–4 cm (bases clasping), margins denticulate (apices rounded to acute), faces minutely sessile-glandular.
sessile;
blades ovate to ovate-oblong or elliptic-oblong, 2–7 × 0.5–3 cm (bases cuneate to truncate or subcordate, clasping to subclasping), margins shallowly apiculate-toothed, faces puberulent to sparsely villous and stipitate- to sessile-glandular (sometimes viscid).
usually cupulate to campanulate, sometimes turbinate-campanulate, 5–10 × 6–9(–12) mm (bases mostly rounded to impressed, sometimes obtuse).
campanulate to turbinate-campanulate or turbinate, 4–6 × 5–9 mm (bases obtuse to barely acute).
creamy white to yellowish or pale pink.
rose-pink to purplish.
usually creamy white, sometimes cream, greenish, pinkish, rose-purplish, purplish, yellowish, or pale pink, thinly arachnoid-pubescent and sessile-glandular (the outer ovate to ovate-lanceolate, lengths mostly 0.2–0.6 times inner).
rose-pink to purplish, moderately appressed-villous to puberulous or arachnose, usually viscid-hairy as well (outer phyllaries ovate-acuminate to ovate-lanceolate, lengths 0.5–1 times inner).
in loose to dense, corymbiform arrays.
in corymbiform arrays.
persistent, bristles distinct.
persistent, bristles distinct.
= 20.
Pluchea foetida
Pluchea baccharis
Pluchea foetida var. imbricata has not been treated as distinct from typical P. foetida by recent authors (e.g., A. Cronquist 1980; R. K. Godfrey and J. W. Wooten 1981; R. P. Wunderlin et al. 1996). Although plants similar to the type can be found scattered in Florida and Georgia, a populational integrity does not appear to occur, and intermediate forms exist. Nevertheless, field biologists should be aware of the putative distinctions of var. imbricata to make more critical observations regarding its status.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Pluchea baccharis has been reported from Arkansas; I have not seen a specimen.
Pluchea rosea var. mexicana R. K. Godfrey, endemic to inland gypseous-saline habitats in east-central Mexico, has been treated at specific rank (G. L. Nesom 1989).
The geographic ranges of Pluchea baccharis and P. foetida are nearly congruent and the taxa intergrade in morphology. The distinction between them is based primarily on corolla and phyllary color. Features of involucral vestiture also appear to be relatively constant. Head size and shape are not reliable diagnostic features.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Distalmost leaves triangular-ovate; heads in tight, rounded clusters at ends of branches; involucres turbinate-campanulate, 9–10 mm; phyllaries pink- ish to rose-purplish | var. imbricata |
1. Distalmost leaves mostly oblong-elliptic; heads in paniculiform arrays of usually flat-topped cymiform clusters; involucres broadly campanulate, 5–8 mm; phyllaries cream to greenish | var. foetida |
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