Packera werneriifolia
Encyclopedia
Packera werneriifolia is a species of flowering plant in the aster family
known by the common name hoary groundsel. It is native to the western United States, where it grows in mountain habitat in subalpine
and alpine climate
s, including forests and barren talus
.
It is a perennial herb which is usually small but is otherwise variable in appearance. It grows up to about 15 centimeters tall from a basal rosette of thick, linear or oval leaves a few centimeters long; leaf morphology varies from the western to the eastern regions of the plant's range.
The inflorescence
bears a single flower head
or a cluster of a few heads and may be nearly hairless to quite woolly. The flower head contains yellow disc florets, and usually either 8 or 13 yellow ray florets, though these are sometimes absent.
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 name hoary groundsel. It is native to the western United States, where it grows in mountain habitat in subalpine
Subalpine
The subalpine zone is the biotic zone immediately below tree line around the world. Species that occur in this zone depend on the location of the zone on the Earth, for example, Snow Gum in Australia, or Subalpine Larch, Mountain Hemlock and Subalpine Fir in western North America.Trees in the...
and alpine climate
Alpine climate
Alpine climate is the average weather for a region above the tree line. This climate is also referred to as mountain climate or highland climate....
s, including forests and barren talus
Scree
Scree, also called talus, is a term given to an accumulation of broken rock fragments at the base of crags, mountain cliffs, or valley shoulders. Landforms associated with these materials are sometimes called scree slopes or talus piles...
.
It is a perennial herb which is usually small but is otherwise variable in appearance. It grows up to about 15 centimeters tall from a basal rosette of thick, linear or oval leaves a few centimeters long; leaf morphology varies from the western to the eastern regions of the plant's range.
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...
bears 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....
or a cluster of a few heads and may be nearly hairless to quite woolly. The flower head contains yellow disc florets, and usually either 8 or 13 yellow ray florets, though these are sometimes absent.