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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE SUNFLOWER FAMILY | ||
| The sunflowers are found around the
globe in many different places, from temperate climates, like in Saskatchewan,
to mountains or in dry regions. The sunflower family is very large and contains
about 19,000 species! As you can imagine, the plants in this family can
look very different from one another. The sunflowers can be shrubs or herbs,
with many different leaf shapes and flower colours. One thing that is common
to all sunflowers is the type of flower arrangement. In this family, there
are many flowers grouped together into a head, like the one you see on a
daisy. It looks like one flower from a distance, but when you get close
you will see that it is actually made up of many, small flowers. The head
may have ray flowers on the outside and disc flowers on the inside, or only
one of the two kinds. Many of the seeds, like the dandelion, have a fluffy
structure attached to the seed. This is called the pappus and helps the
seeds to spread in the wind. You probably know a lot of plants in the sunflower family. Sunflowers can be plants you eat or plants that you may grow in the yard. For example, did you know that lettuce is from the sunflower family? So are the marigolds in the garden! Maybe you have heard of Echinacea? It is a plant in the sunflower family that is used to make medicine. Some of the sunflowers are also weeds, like the dandelion. |
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| MEADOW EVERLASTING | ||
| LATIN NAME: Antennaria corymbosa | ||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | ||
| Pearly everlasting is between 10 and 30 cm tall, with stems that grow horizontally underground. The above-ground stems are hairy and slender. The runners are leafy and the plants may form mats on the ground. The basal leaves are white woolly on both sides. The leaves on the stem are smaller towards the top of the plant. The leaves do not have a leaf stalk and are alternately arranged. The heads are in compact clusters and the bracts are whitish with dark brown spots at the base. The flowers are white. | ||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | ||
| Meadow everlasting grows in woods and prairies. | ||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | ||
| This plant is found in the Cypress Hills in the Cypress Upland Ecoregion. | ||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | ||
| Meadow everlasting is endangered in Saskatchewan because it is only found in the Cypress Hills area. | ||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY MEADOW EVERLASTING | ||
| * Are the bracts on the head whitish with a brown
spot? * Does the plant have an above ground horizontal stem (runner)? * Is the plant mat forming? * Did you find it in the Cypress Hills? |
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| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found meadow everlasting! | ||
