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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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| HIRSUTE FLEABANE | ||
| LATIN NAME: Erigeron lonchophyllos | ||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | ||
| Hirsute fleabane is 10 to 50 cm tall. The roots are fibrous and weak. The stem is leafy and branched with short, stiff hairs. The leaves can be attached at the base of the stem or upwards. The basal leaves are spoon-shaped and can be up to 15 cm long. The stem leaves are long and thin with smooth margins. The leaves can be longer than the lowest heads. The heads are in an unbranched cluster. The stalks and the bracts are hairy but not glandular. The ray flowers are 2 to 3 mm long and are white or pink. The fruits have two nerves and a white to yellowish pappus. | ||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | ||
| Hirsute fleabane grows on lakeshores and in other wet places. | ||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | ||
| This plant is found in a large range in Saskatchewan from the northern part of the province, near Lake Athabasca to western Saskatchewan. It is found in these ecoregions: Cypress Upland, Mixed Grassland, Moist Mixed Grassland, Aspen Parkland, Boreal Transition, Mid-Boreal Upland, and Selwyn Lake Upland. | ||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | ||
| Although this plant has a large range in the province, it is looks very similar to other plants and may be overlooked. Hirsute fleabane is considered vulnerable. | ||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY HIRSUTE FLEABANE | ||
| * Are the ray flowers pink or white? * Are the leaves longer than the lowest heads? * Are the bracts lacking glands? * Did you find it on a lakeshore or other wet place in northern or western Saskatchewan? |
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| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found hirsute fleabane! | ||
