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five-needle pricklyleaf

bristleleaf pricklyleaf, Dahlburg-daisy, shooting star

Habit Perennials or subshrubs, ± grayish to green, to 15(–25) cm, usually puberulent to canescent, sometimes glabrescent or glabrous. Annuals (rarely persisting), green, to 30 cm, glabrous or sparsely hirtellous.
Stems

erect or spreading.

decumbent to erect.

Leaves

mostly opposite;

blades mostly pinnately lobed, 6–28+ mm overall, lobes 3–11 linear to filiform (usually stiff, setiform).

mostly alternate (sometimes opposite at 1–3 proximal nodes);

blades usually lobed, 12–28 mm overall, lobes 7–15, linear to filiform, pliable (blades mostly not lobed in var. wrightii).

Peduncles

20–100 mm, puberulent or glabrous.

30–80 mm, glabrous or hirtellous.

Involucres

obconic to campanulate or hemispheric, 4–6 mm.

obconic, 5–7 mm.

Ray florets

(8–)12–21;

corollas yellow to orange-yellow, laminae 2–6(–8) × 1–3 mm.

10–21;

corollas yellow-orange, laminae 4–10 × 1.5–3 mm.

Disc florets

16–40 or 50–80;

corollas yellow, 2–4 mm (tending to zygomorphy in peripheral florets in some plants).

50–100+;

corollas yellow, 2.5–4.5 mm (peripheral ± zygomorphic in some plants).

Phyllaries

12–21, margins of outer distinct 1/5 to nearly all their lengths, abaxial faces puberulent or glabrous.

12–22, margins of outer distinct less than 1/5 their lengths, abaxial faces glabrous or sparsely hirtellous.

Calyculi

0, or of 1–5 deltate bractlets, lengths less than 1/2 phyllaries.

of 3–8 deltate to subulate bractlets, lengths less than 1/2 phyllaries.

Cypselae

2–3 mm;

pappi of 10 erose and/or aristate scales mostly 1–3 mm.

2–3.5 mm;

pappi of erose and/or aristate scales 0.7–3.5 mm.

Thymophylla pentachaeta

Thymophylla tenuiloba

Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; NM; NV; TX; UT; Mexico [Introduced(?) in South America (Argentina)]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; n Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 4 (4 in the flora).

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

Varieties 4 (4 in the flora).

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

Key
1. Involucres cylindric, 2–3.5 mm diam.; disc florets 16–40
var. hartwegii
1. Involucres obconic, campanulate, or hemispheric, mostly 4–5 mm diam.; disc florets 50–80
→ 2
2. Peduncles 20–50 mm; margins of outer phyllaries distinct almost to bases
var. belenidium
2. Peduncles (40–)50–100 mm; margins of outer phyllaries distinct less ca. 1/2 or ca. 1/3 their lengths
→ 3
3. Leaf lobes mostly 9–11; phyllaries usually glabrous or glabrescent, rarely hairy
var. pentachaeta
3. Leaf lobes mostly 5–7(–10); phyllaries densely puberulent
var. puberula
1. Leaf blades seldom lobed (linear to spatulate, usually entire, rarely with 3–5 toothlike lobes)
var. wrightii
1. Leaf blades lobed (lobes 7–15 linear)
→ 2
2. Pappi of 3–5-aristate scales
var. tenuiloba
2. Pappi of truncate to lanceolate and/or 1-aristate scales
→ 3
3. Pappi of 5 erose scales alternating with 5unequal, 1-aristate scales
var. treculii
3. Pappi of 5–10 lanceolate to muticous scales, all ± erose or 1–3, 1-aristate
var. texana
Source FNA vol. 21, p. 241. FNA vol. 21, p. 242.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Pectidinae > Thymophylla Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Pectidinae > Thymophylla
Sibling taxa
T. acerosa, T. aurea, T. concinna, T. micropoides, T. setifolia, T. tenuiloba, T. tephroleuca
T. acerosa, T. aurea, T. concinna, T. micropoides, T. pentachaeta, T. setifolia, T. tephroleuca
Subordinate taxa
T. pentachaeta var. belenidium, T. pentachaeta var. hartwegii, T. pentachaeta var. pentachaeta, T. pentachaeta var. puberula
T. tenuiloba var. tenuiloba, T. tenuiloba var. texana, T. tenuiloba var. treculii, T. tenuiloba var. wrightii
Synonyms Hymenatherum pentachaetum, Dyssodia pentachaeta Hymenatherum tenuilobum, Dyssodia tenuiloba
Name authority (de Candolle) Small: Fl. S.E. U.S., 1295, 1341. (1903) (de Candolle) Small: Fl. S.E. U.S., 1295, 1341. (1903)
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