Hieracium gracile
Encyclopedia
Hieracium gracile is a species of hawkweed
known by the common name slender hawkweed. It is native to much of the northwestern United States and parts of British Columbia
, where it grows in moist mountain forests. Two varieties are native to Alaska
. This plant forms a basal rosette of smooth-edged leaves 2 to 8 centimeters long, from which it bolts a thin, erect, mostly naked stem. The flower heads
have layers of phyllaries
coated in black glandular hairs wrapped around a center of yellow ligules. The fruit is a tiny achene
with a light brown pappus
.
Hieracium
Hieracium known by its common name Hawkweed and long ago by its classical name hierakion which comes from the ancient Greek hierax, "a hawk"...
known by the common name slender hawkweed. It is native to much of the northwestern United States and parts of 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...
, where it grows in moist mountain forests. Two varieties are native to Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. This plant forms a basal rosette of smooth-edged leaves 2 to 8 centimeters long, from which it bolts a thin, erect, mostly naked stem. The flower heads
Head (botany)
The capitulum is considered the most derived form of inflorescence. Flower heads found outside Asteraceae show lesser degrees of specialization....
have layers of 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...
coated in black glandular hairs wrapped around a center of yellow ligules. The fruit is a tiny 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 light brown 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...
.