Madia gracilis
Encyclopedia
Madia gracilis is a species of flowering plant in the aster family
known by the common names grassy tarweed and slender tarweed.
to Baja California
to Utah
, where it grows in many habitat types except for arid areas.
The inflorescence
is an array of clusters of flower heads
. Each head is lined with phyllaries
that are coated densely with stalked knobby resin glands. It bears yellow, lobe-tipped ray florets a few millimeters long and several black-anthered disc florets. The fruit is a flat, hairless achene
with no 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 grassy tarweed and slender tarweed.
Range
Madia gracilis is native to western North America from British ColumbiaBritish 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 Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...
to Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, where it grows in many habitat types except for arid areas.
Description
The Madia gracilis plant is variable in appearance. In general, it is an aromatic annual herb growing up to a meter in height, its stem branching and hairy and glandular in texture. The leaves are up to 10 centimeters long and covered in soft hairs and stalked resin glands.The 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...
is an array of clusters of flower heads
Head (botany)
The capitulum is considered the most derived form of inflorescence. Flower heads found outside Asteraceae show lesser degrees of specialization....
. Each head is lined with 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...
that are coated densely with stalked knobby resin glands. It bears yellow, lobe-tipped ray florets a few millimeters long and several black-anthered disc florets. The fruit is a flat, hairless achene
Achene
An achene is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate and indehiscent...
with no 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...
.