Species: Packera streptanthifolia (Greene) W.A. Weber & A. Löve

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Packera streptanthifolia (Greene) W.A. Weber & A. Löve

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TAXONOMY

Family:

Asteraceae or Compositae

Genus:

Packera

Species Synonyms:

Senecio cymbalarioides ssp. moresbiensis Calder & Taylor
Packera oodes (Rydb.) W.A. Weber
Senecio acutidens Rydb.
Senecio cymbalarioides Nutt., non Buek
Senecio fulgens Rydb.
Senecio jonesii Rydb.
Senecio laetiflorus Greene
Senecio leonardii Rydb.
Senecio longipetiolatus Rydb.
Senecio oodes Rydb.
Senecio pammelii Greenm.
Senecio platylobus Rydb.
Senecio rubricaulis Greene
Senecio streptanthifolius Greene
Senecio subcuneatus Rydb.
Senecio suksdorfii Greenm.
Senecio wardii Greene
Senecio aureus var. borealis Torr. & Gray
Senecio cymbalarioides var. borealis (Torr. & Gray) Greenm.
Senecio cymbalarioides var. suksdorfii (Greenm.) M.E. Peck
Senecio streptanthifolius var. borealis (Torr. & Gray) J.F. Bain
Senecio streptanthifolius var. kluanei J.F. Bain
Senecio streptanthifolius var. laetiflorus (Greene) J.F. Bain
Senecio streptanthifolius var. oodes (Rydb.) J.F. Bain
Senecio streptanthifolius var. Rubricaulis (Greene) J.F. Bain
Senecio streptanthifolius var. wallowensis J.F. Bain

Common Names:

northern groundsel
Rocky Mountain groundsel
northern ragwort

DISTRIBUTION

Canada:

Yukon Territory – Mackenzie District – northwestern Saskatchewan, British Columbia – central Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan:

northern – central Saskatchewan; Lake Athabasca – Candle Lake

Ecoregion:

Mid-Boreal Upland, Churchill River Upland, Athabasca Plain, Tazin Lake Upland

HABITAT

Saskatchewan:

sand, limestone outcrops, clay, or silt on dry hillsides, in open woods, and in disturbed areas

Associated Species:

black spruce, jack pine

RARITY STATUS

Provincial Status According
to Harms (2003):

Vulnerable

Nature Conservancy Status:

G5 S1S2

Saskatchewan Species at
Risk Status:

None

COSEWIC Status:

None

Northern groundsel is vulnerable because it is somewhat regionally restricted and most of the local populations are small. No immediate threats are known or anticipated.

SPECIES DESCRIPTION

Height:

10 – 50 cm tall

Roots:

fibrous; short persistent woody stem base or rhizome

Stems:

perennial, usually solitary, abundantly leafy only towards base, nearly hairless

Leaves:

basal and on the stem; basal leaves many, stalked, 2 – 7 cm long (including stalk), spoon-shaped to oval, base tapered to stalk, hairless, slightly fleshy, margin entire except for 3 – 5 rounded teeth at tip; stem leaves few, sessile, 2 – 3 cm long, to 0.5 cm wide, reduced upwards, linear to lance-shaped, hairless, slightly fleshy, deeply toothed to shallowly lobed

Inflorescence:

heads more than 2, in loose terminal, bracted cluster, 1 – 2 cm broad; stalks long; bracts 15 – 25 in one series, 4 – 7 mm high, 1 – 2 mm wide, lance-shaped, brownish at bottom; receptacle jagged or fringed around achene pits

Flowers:

ray flowers 6 – 8 mm long, conspicuous, yellow-orange

Fruits:

achene reddish-brown, hairless; pappus white

*KEY TO PACKERA* IN SASKATCHEWAN**
Note: This complex needs taxonomic revision. The key may not be accurate in all cases. Please refer to another key if you encounter difficulty with this one.

1 Plants usually hairless or nearly so; basal leaves usually entire or toothed, not lobed	2
1 Plants usually woolly-hairy (sometime glabrous) and/ or with basal leaves; basal leaves if present pinnately lobed or dissected	8

2 Ray flowers 0 or 8 – 13 (petals 2 – 7 mm long); plants of northern Saskatchewan	3
2 Ray flowers 0 or 5 – 21 (petals 4 – 12 mm long); plants from various areas of Saskatchewan	4

3 Basal leaves thick; heads few (1 – 4); bracts purple or at least purple-tipped	P. pauciflora
3 Basal leaves thin; head numerous (8 – 20); bracts green	P. indecora

4 Basal and lower stem leaves not tapering to stalk, base square to heart-shaped	5
4 Basal and lower stem leaves gradually tapering to stalk	6

5 Basal leaves lance-shaped to narrowly oval, tip short-tapered; margin toothed	P. pseudaurea
5 Basal leaves heart-shaped, spoon-shaped, or oval, tip rounded; margin toothed, lobed or wavy	P. streptanthifolia

6 Plants with a taproots and woody persistent stem base; may be woolly in leaf axils	P. tridenticulata
6 Plants with fibrous, taproots or rhizomes, persistent stem base if present not woody; leaves and stems generally all hairless	7

7 Basal leaves thick, inversely lance-shaped to spatula-shaped; disc flowers 35 – 60	P. streptanthifolia
7 Basal leaves thin, lance-shaped to elliptic; disc flowers 50 – 80	P. paupercula

8 Stems and leaves persistently woolly	P. plattensis
8 Stems and leaves usually hairless, sometimes woolly at base or in leaf axils	9

9 Plants 3 – 10 cm tall; heads few (1-6)	P. cana
9 Plants 10 – 50 cm tall; heads several (6 – 30)	10

10 Basal leaves nearly circular to broadly oval	11
10 Basal leaves narrowly elliptic to spoon-shaped	12

11 Margins of basal leaves entire to toothed; bracts hairless	P. streptanthifolia
11 Margins of basal leaves toothed to divided; bracts densely woolly	P. plattensis

12 Basal leaves toothed to lobed; tangled woolly to nearly hairless	P. plattensis
12 Basal leaves entire, except towards toothed tip; white woolly	P. cana