Flora of North America species comparison

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Senecio elmeri

Senecio spartioides

Elmer's butterweed, Elmer's ragwort

broom groundsel, broom senecio, broom-like ragwort, grass-leaf ragwort, many-head groundsel
Habit Perennials, 10–20(–30) cm (rhizomes trailing or branching). Subshrubs, 20–120+ cm (taproots forming woody crowns).
Herbage

unevenly villous-tomentose or floccose, glabrescent.

usually glabrous, sometimes sparsely, unevenly hairy.
Stems

single (from loosely clustered basal leaves).

usually multiple (branching and arching upward).
Leaves

progressively reduced distally; ± petiolate;

blades ovate to oblanceolate, (3–)4–8(–10) × 2–3(–4) cm, bases tapered, margins shallowly dentate (mid and distal leaves smaller, bractlike, often clasping).

evenly distributed (proximal often smaller);

sessile or obscurely petiolate;

blades narrowly linear to filiform (or parted into linear-filiform lobes), 5–10 cm × 1–6 mm, bases ± linear, ultimate margins entire.
Ray florets

± 8;

corolla laminae 8–15 mm.

± 5 (± 13);

corolla laminae 8–12 mm.
Phyllaries

(± 8) ± 13, 8–10 mm, tips black (villous).

usually ± 8, sometimes ± 13, (5–)6–9(–10) mm, tips green or minutely black.
Calyculi

of 2–7 lance-linear to linear bractlets (lengths 1/3–2/3 phyllaries).

0 or of 1–3+ (minute, inconspicuous) bractlets.
Heads

erect or weakly nodding (especially in bud), (2–)5–9(–12) in loose, cymiform arrays.

10–20(–60) in compound corymbiform arrays (involucres cylindric or narrowly campanulate, 3–6 mm diam.).
Cypselae

glabrous.

usually hirtellous, sometimes glabrous.
2n

= 40.

= 40.

Senecio elmeri

Senecio spartioides
Phenology Flowering summer. Flowering summer–fall.
Habitat Alpine and subalpine rocky sites and talus slopes Open, dry disturbed sites, especially stream banks and hillsides
Elevation 2000–3000 m (6600–9800 ft) 1000–3500 m (3300–11500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; NE; NM; NV; SD; TX; UT; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Plants with the leaves parted into lobes that are seldom more than 1 mm wide have been recognized as Senecio spartioides var. multicapitatus (or as S. multicapitatus); expression of the character is inconsistent throughout the range and recognition of the two entities is all but impossible to maintain.

Senecio spartioides apparently hybridizes with S. eremophilus in Garfield County, Utah, and perhaps elsewhere (cf., Holmgren, Reveal, and LaFrance 3463, BRY, KSC, NY). The name Senecio toiyabensis rests upon materials that suggest introgression with S. fremontii. Some specimens usually referred to 41. S. pattersonensis suggest introgression with S. spartioides.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 20, p. 551. FNA vol. 20, p. 559.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Senecioneae > Senecio Asteraceae > tribe Senecioneae > Senecio
Sibling taxa
S. actinella, S. amplectens, S. ampullaceus, S. aphanactis, S. arizonicus, S. aronicoides, S. astephanus, S. atratus, S. bigelovii, S. blochmaniae, S. californicus, S. cannabifolius, S. clarkianus, S. crassulus, S. elegans, S. eremophilus, S. ertterae, S. erucifolius, S. flaccidus, S. fremontii, S. hydrophiloides, S. hydrophilus, S. integerrimus, S. jacobaea, S. lemmonii, S. lugens, S. lyonii, S. megacephalus, S. mohavensis, S. multidentatus, S. neowebsteri, S. parryi, S. pattersonensis, S. pseudoarnica, S. pudicus, S. quaylei, S. rapifolius, S. riddellii, S. sacramentanus, S. scorzonella, S. serra, S. sheldonensis, S. soldanella, S. spartioides, S. sphaerocephalus, S. spribillei, S. squalidus, S. sylvaticus, S. taraxacoides, S. triangularis, S. viscosus, S. vulgaris, S. warnockii, S. wootonii
S. actinella, S. amplectens, S. ampullaceus, S. aphanactis, S. arizonicus, S. aronicoides, S. astephanus, S. atratus, S. bigelovii, S. blochmaniae, S. californicus, S. cannabifolius, S. clarkianus, S. crassulus, S. elegans, S. elmeri, S. eremophilus, S. ertterae, S. erucifolius, S. flaccidus, S. fremontii, S. hydrophiloides, S. hydrophilus, S. integerrimus, S. jacobaea, S. lemmonii, S. lugens, S. lyonii, S. megacephalus, S. mohavensis, S. multidentatus, S. neowebsteri, S. parryi, S. pattersonensis, S. pseudoarnica, S. pudicus, S. quaylei, S. rapifolius, S. riddellii, S. sacramentanus, S. scorzonella, S. serra, S. sheldonensis, S. soldanella, S. sphaerocephalus, S. spribillei, S. squalidus, S. sylvaticus, S. taraxacoides, S. triangularis, S. viscosus, S. vulgaris, S. warnockii, S. wootonii
Synonyms S. crepidineus S. andersonii, S. incurvus, S. multicapitatus, S. serra var. sanctus, S. spartioides var. granularis, S. toiyabensis
Name authority Piper: Erythea 7: 173. (1899) Torrey & A. Gray: Fl. N. Amer. 2: 438. (1843)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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