Antennaria umbrinella
Encyclopedia
Antennaria umbrinella is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family
known by the common names umber pussytoes and brown pussytoes. It is native to western North America from southwestern Canada to the Sierra Nevada and southern Rocky Mountains
. This is a perennial herb growing erect stems to a maximum height around 16 centimeters from a woody base with spreading stolon
s. The base is covered in woolly leaves each one to two centimeters long and lance-shaped to spoon-shaped. Each inflorescence
holds several flower heads
with fuzzy phyllaries
which are whitish to brown in color. The plant is dioecious
, with males and females producing different flower types in the heads. The fruit is an achene
with a hard body 2 millimeters long and a long pappus
of hairs up to 5 millimeters long.
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 umber pussytoes and brown pussytoes. It is native to western North America from southwestern Canada to the Sierra Nevada and southern Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
. This is a perennial herb growing erect stems to a maximum height around 16 centimeters from a woody base with spreading 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 base is covered in woolly leaves each one to two centimeters long and lance-shaped to spoon-shaped. Each 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 several flower heads
Head (botany)
The capitulum is considered the most derived form of inflorescence. Flower heads found outside Asteraceae show lesser degrees of specialization....
with fuzzy phyllaries
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
which are whitish to brown in color. The plant 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 males and females producing different flower types in the heads. The fruit is an achene
Achene
An achene is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate and indehiscent...
with a hard body 2 millimeters long and a long 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...
of hairs up to 5 millimeters long.