Eriocephalus longifolius M.A.N.Müll.

Species

Angiosperms > Asterales > Asteraceae > Eriocephalus

Characteristics

Slender, erect, sparsely branched shrubs, 0.4-1.5 m high. Old stems leafless, leaves only at branch tips, brown-grey to dark grey, regularly cylindrical not displaying anomalous secondary growth, growing points felty, glabrescent; young shoots brown. Leaves alternate, at maturity adaxially glabrescent, abaxially basally with permanent felty strip, acicular, 18-38 x 0.4-0.5 mm, mostly entire, sometimes pinnatisect with 3 lobes, semiconvex distally, abaxially flattened, main vein prominent in dried material in proximal third to half of leaf, then shallowly grooved to near apex, bright green, apex acute, base adaxially flattened, not broadened; young leaves felty/cobwebby, initially adhering to each other, later free. Capitula heterogamous radiate, umbellate-racemose, 5-6 x 6 mm; peduncles felty, 12-17 mm long. Involucral bracts 5, broadly ovate with narrow, green, central, herbaceous part and broad, membranous margin, 4.5-5.2 x 2.2-3.8 mm, felty to glabrous, apex slightly fringed. Paleae: those of marginal florets 4.2-4.6 mm long, totally connate into cylindrical sheath with 3 or 4 lobes, fringed, long-lanate abaxially, hairs septate; those of outer disc florets lanceolate, keeled, central ones oblong to linear, flattened, membranous, 3.5-6.0 x 1.2-0.5 mm, apices long-fringed, abaxially long-lanate. Ray florets 2 or 3, female, 6-7 mm long; corolla white with broad cuneate to broad strap-shaped lamina, distinct, 3-lobed or obtusely 3-dentate, 2.3 x 3.6 mm. Style branches linear, flattened, 0.7-1.4 mm long. Ovary (and cypsela)oblong to obovoid, slightly flattish, trigonous, long-lanate. Seed lanceolate to narrowly ovoid, 3-4 mm long. Disc florets 10-18, functionally male with sterile ovary; corolla white to creamy to pale purple, trumpet-shaped, 3.6-4.8 mm long, 5-lobed. Stamens 5. Style undivided, apex truncate with short, sweeping hairs. Receptacle after anthesis with dense, white, long-hairy indumentum between involucral bracts and connate, marginal paleae.
Life form perennial
Growth form shrub
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.4 - 1.5
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
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Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
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Hardiness (USDA) -

Usage

Uses -
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
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Germination treatment -
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Productivity -

Distribution

Eriocephalus longifolius world distribution map, present in South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:20000625-1
WFO ID wfo-0000022108
COL ID 3B3J8
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Eriocephalus longifolius