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

blunt-leaf rabbit-tobacco, eastern rabbit-tobacco, gnaphale à feuilles obtuses, old field balsam, rabbit-tobacco

California cudweed, California everlasting, California rabbit-tobacco, ladies' tobacco

Habit Annuals or winter annuals (sometimes faintly fragrant), (10–)30–100 cm; taprooted. Annuals, biennials, or perennials, 20–40 cm; taprooted.
Stems

white-tomentose, sometimes lightly so, usually not glandular, rarely glandular near bases.

stipitate-glandular, sometimes lightly villous as well.

Leaf

blades linear-lanceolate to elliptic or oblanceolate, 2.5–10 cm × 2–10 mm (relatively even-sized), bases not clasping, not decurrent, margins flat, faces bicolor, abaxial white-tomentose, adaxial green, usually glabrous or slightly glandular, sometimes with persistent light tomentum.

blades mostly narrowly oblong-lanceolate, 4–10 cm × 5–10(–20) mm (relatively even-sized distally), bases auriculate-clasping to subclasping or not, decurrent (2–10 mm) or not, margins flat or slightly revolute, faces concolor, mostly green, stipitate-glandular, viscid, sometimes lightly villous as well.

Involucres

broadly campanulate, 5–7 mm.

campanulo-globose, 5.5–7 mm.

Pistillate florets

38–96.

105–140.

Bisexual florets

4–8(–11).

7–12.

Phyllaries

in 4–6 series, white (opaque, usually shiny, sometimes dull), ovate to ovate-oblong, glabrous or tomentose (bases).

in 7–10 series, white (opaque, shiny or dull), broadly ovate to oblong-obovate, glabrous.

Heads

in corymbiform (sometimes rounded to elongate) arrays.

in corymbiform arrays.

Cypselae

ridged, smooth.

ridged, smooth.

2n

= 28.

Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium

Pseudognaphalium californicum

Phenology Flowering Aug–Oct. Flowering Apr–Jul.
Habitat Open sites, often disturbed, roadsides, fields, pastures, open woods, in various soils, most abundantly in sand Sandy canyons, dry hills, coastal chaparral
Elevation 5–200 m (0–700 ft) 60–800 m (200–2600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Leaf insertion in Pseudognaphalium californicum is unusually variable: bases may be clasping to subclasping without decurrent margins or decurrent and not show any clasping tendency.

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

Source FNA vol. 19, p. 420. FNA vol. 19, p. 423.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Gnaphalieae > Pseudognaphalium Asteraceae > tribe Gnaphalieae > Pseudognaphalium
Sibling taxa
P. arizonicum, P. austrotexanum, P. beneolens, P. biolettii, P. californicum, P. canescens, P. helleri, P. jaliscense, P. leucocephalum, P. luteoalbum, P. macounii, P. micradenium, P. microcephalum, P. pringlei, P. ramosissimum, P. roseum, P. saxicola, P. stramineum, P. thermale, P. viscosum
P. arizonicum, P. austrotexanum, P. beneolens, P. biolettii, P. canescens, P. helleri, P. jaliscense, P. leucocephalum, P. luteoalbum, P. macounii, P. micradenium, P. microcephalum, P. obtusifolium, P. pringlei, P. ramosissimum, P. roseum, P. saxicola, P. stramineum, P. thermale, P. viscosum
Synonyms Gnaphalium obtusifolium, Gnaphalium obtusifolium var. praecox Gnaphalium californicum, Gnaphalium decurrens var. californicum
Name authority (Linnaeus) Hilliard & B. L. Burtt: Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 82: 205. (1981) (de Candolle) Anderberg: Opera Bot. 104: 147. (1991)
Web links