Liatris punctata Hook.

Dotted blazing star (en)

Species

Angiosperms > Asterales > Asteraceae > Liatris

Characteristics

Rootstock (unlike all our other spp.) ± elongate and pointed at the base, like a short, fleshy-thickened taproot, or seldom horizontal and resembling a thickened rhizome, producing scattered aerial stems; lvs numerous, punctate, glabrous except for the often coarsely ciliate margins, linear or linear-oblanceolate, the lowest smaller than those just above and often deciduous; heads several or many in a spiciform infl, sessile or nearly so; invol subcylindric, 10–18 mm, its bracts punctate, mostly sharply-mucronate-acuminate, commonly some of them ± ciliate-margined; fls mostly 4–6 per head, the cor-lobes glabrous, the tube hairy toward the base within; pappus evidently plumose; 2n=20. Dry, open places, often in sandy soil; sw. Mich. to Man., Alta., Ark., N.M., and n. Mex. Aug.–Oct. Highly variable, and perhaps taxonomically divisible. (L. angustifolia; L. densispicata) Our common phase is var. nebraskana Gaiser, to 8 dm, with scarcely ciliate lvs mostly 2–3 mm wide. The chiefly more western var. punctata is 1–4 dm, with more ciliate lvs to 7 mm wide.
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Plants 15–85 cm. Corms globose to depressed-globose or elongate, sometimes becoming simple or branched rhizomes. Stems glabrous. Leaves: basal and proximal cauline 1-nerved, linear, 50–140 × 1–7 mm, gradually or little reduced distally, essentially glabrous or sparsely piloso-hirsutulous, gland-dotted (margins sometimes ciliate). Heads in dense to loose, spiciform arrays. Involucres campanulate-cylindric, 7–15 × (4–)5–7 mm. Peduncles 0 or very rarely 1–2 mm. Phyllaries in 3–6 series, mostly oblong-obovate, unequal, essentially glabrous, margins without hyaline borders, sometimes ciliate, apices acute, acute-acuminate, obtuse, rounded, or rounded-truncate (often with indurate apicula or mucros, lateral veins usually not evident beyond middle or at least on distal 1/3). Florets 3–8; corolla tubes glabrous inside. Cypselae (5.5–)6–8.5 mm; pappi: lengths ± equaling corollas, bristles plumose.
A small herb. It grows 10-45 cm high. It keeps growing from year to year. The leaves are alternate and narrow. They are stiff and rather thick. They are 5-15 cm long. The flowers are pink disks. The flower heads occur singly at the ends of branches. They are 1-2 cm across. The fruit is a dry achene.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination entomogamy
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.6
Root system rhizome tap-root
Rooting depth (meter) 1.4
Root diameter (meter) 0.3
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Grassy prairies, sagebrush prairies, rocky and gravelly ridges and slopes, roadsides, fencerows, stream banks, over granite, limestone, and sandstone, in sands, clays, gypseous clays, 100-1900m
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It is a temperate plant. It grows in dry open places and in sandy soil.
Light 6-8
Soil humidity 3-6
Soil texture 3-5
Soil acidity 4-7
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 3-7

Usage

The roots are baked and eaten.
Uses environmental use medicinal
Edible roots
Therapeutic use Dermatological Aid (root), Gastrointestinal Aid (root), Urinary Aid (root), Venereal Aid (root), Veterinary Aid (root), Analgesic (root), Ache(Stomach) (unspecified), Swelling (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by cuttings or seedlings.
Mode cuttings seedlings
Germination duration (days) 84
Germination temperacture (C°) -5 - 3
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -40
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Leaf

Liatris punctata leaf picture by Spitzer Annabelle (cc-by-sa)
Liatris punctata leaf picture by can lindy (cc-by-sa)
Liatris punctata leaf picture by Daniel Gonzales (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Liatris punctata flower picture by Missi missi (cc-by-sa)
Liatris punctata flower picture by Missi missi (cc-by-sa)
Liatris punctata flower picture by ben vc (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Liatris punctata world distribution map, present in Canada, Mexico, and United States of America

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:230622-1
WFO ID wfo-0000019886
COL ID 6PWM6
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Lacinaria arenicola Lacinaria punctata Liatris cylindrica Lacinaria densispicata Liatris densispicata Liatris punctata f. punctata Lacinaria punctata f. punctata Liatris punctata var. nebraskana Lacinaria punctata var. punctata Liatris punctata var. coloradensis Liatris densispicata var. densispicata Liatris punctata var. punctata Liatris punctata f. coloradensis Liatris punctata

Lower taxons

Liatris punctata var. mexicana