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Liatris aestivalis

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Liatris aestivalis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Liatris
Species:
L. aestivalis
Binomial name
Liatris aestivalis
G.L.Nesom & O'Kennon

Liatris aestivalis, also known as the summer gayfeather, is a plant species in the family Asteraceae and genus Liatris. The specific epithet, aestivalis, is derived from Latin and means "pertaining to the summer".[1]

Description

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It grows from rounded corms that produce hairless stems 20 to 65 centimeters tall. Plants have dark-purple colored flowers in dense heads that are closely grouped together, forming a cylindrical-shaped spike-like collection surrounding the stems. The basal and cauline leaves have one nerve and are linear to linear-lanceolate in shape. It flowers in July and August, sometimes into September. The seed are produced in cypselae fruits that are 4.5 to 6 millimeters long with feathery bristle-like pappi.[2]

Distribution

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It is native to Oklahoma and Texas in the United States, where it is found in habitats that range from limestone outcrops to slopes and bases of slopes with shallow soils.

References

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  1. ^ Eggli, Urs; Newton, Leonard E. (2004). Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer. p. 4. ISBN 978-3-540-00489-9. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. ^ Nesom, Guy L. (2006). "Liatris aestivalis". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 21. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.