Antennaria flagellaris
Encyclopedia
Antennaria flagellaris is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family
known by the common names whip pussytoes and stoloniferous pussytoes. It is native to western North America from British Columbia
to California
to Wyoming
, but mostly to the Great Basin
, where it is a member of the sagebrush
scrub plant community.
This is a petite perennial herb forming a thin patch on the ground no more than 2 centimeters high. It grows from a slender caudex
and spreads via thin, wiry, cobwebby stolon
s. The woolly grayish leaves are one to two centimeters long and generally lance-shaped. The tiny inflorescence
holds a single flower head
less than a centimeter wide. The species is dioecious
, with male plants producing staminate
flowers and female plants producing pistillate
. The fruit is a bumpy achene
up to a centimeter long including its long, soft pappus
.
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
known by the common names whip pussytoes and stoloniferous pussytoes. It is native to western North America from British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, but mostly to the Great Basin
Great Basin
The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...
, where it is a member of the sagebrush
Sagebrush
Sagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
scrub plant community.
This is a petite perennial herb forming a thin patch on the ground no more than 2 centimeters high. It grows from a slender caudex
Caudex
A caudex is a form of stem morphology appearing as a thickened, short, perennial stem that is either underground or near ground level . It may be swollen for the purpose of water storage, especially in xerophytes...
and spreads via thin, wiry, cobwebby stolon
Stolon
In biology, stolons are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external skeletons.-In botany:...
s. The woolly grayish leaves are one to two centimeters long and generally lance-shaped. The tiny inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
holds a single flower head
Head (botany)
The capitulum is considered the most derived form of inflorescence. Flower heads found outside Asteraceae show lesser degrees of specialization....
less than a centimeter wide. The species is dioecious
Plant sexuality
Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. This article describes morphological aspects of sexual reproduction of plants....
, with male plants producing staminate
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
flowers and female plants producing pistillate
Gynoecium
Gynoecium is most commonly used as a collective term for all carpels in a flower. A carpel is the ovule and seed producing reproductive organ in flowering plants. Carpels are derived from ovule-bearing leaves which evolved to form a closed structure containing the ovules...
. The fruit is a bumpy achene
Achene
An achene is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate and indehiscent...
up to a centimeter long including its long, soft pappus
Pappus (flower structure)
The pappus is the modified calyx, the part of an individual disk, ray or ligule floret surrounding the base of the corolla, in flower heads of the plant family Asteraceae. The pappus may be composed of bristles , awns, scales, or may be absent. In some species, the pappus is too small to see...
.