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Hairy False Goldenaster
Heterotheca villosa (Pursh) Shinners
Asteraceae (Sunflower Family
▲▼mature flowering plants
▲▼mature flowering plants
▲▼ flowers and stems
Heterotheca villosa
(Pursh) Shinners,
Hairy
False Goldenaster:
(Bayer Code:
HTTVI; US Code HEVI4)
·
U.S.
native simple perennial that grows 0.25-2.5 feet tall, with one to many upright
to leaning stems growing from a taproot; stems usually unbranched until
flowering commences; stems somewhat to very hairy, often with glandular hairs
·
Leaves alternate, oval to lanceolate, moderately to quite hairy, often with
glandular hairs; lower stem leaves larger and wider than upper stem leaves;
lower leaves have short petioles, while upper stem leaves do not
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Head inflorescences are 0.75-1.5 inches in diameter, at stem tips, and have
10-20 ray flowers (“petals”) and 20-50 yellow center disk flowers
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Bracts below the inflorescence form a cylindric shape and are lanceolate to
triangular, hairy, with pointed tips, and are arranged in several overlapping
rows; bract tips may be purplish
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Flowering is from late spring through mid-autumn
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After flowering the center disk of the flower head becomes a globe of tan hairs
from the pappus (parachute-like hairs) attached to the mature seed/fruit
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Prefers full sun, dry soils; found in prairies, pastures, on right-of-ways,
non-crop areas
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This can be a very variable species, in terms of leaf shape, size, degree of
hairiness, and number of glandular hairs; normally it will form a mounded plant
with age, with the typical goldenaster flower type and brown powder-puff
appearance of the flowering head after seed/fruit matures; the plant may or may
not have a camphor-like or strong odor, depending on the number of glandular
hairs