stiffleaf false goldenaster

Stiffleaf false goldenaster is an 7″ to 18″ tall, erect, perennial forb that rises on 1 to 50 or more stems from a taproot. It sometimes spreads by rhizomes.

The stems are ascending to erect, rough to the touch, and sometimes brown or reddish-brown. They are moderately to densely covered with long, straight, stiff, sharp, appressed hairs. They often have short branches above the middle. They may be sparsely covered with gland-tipped hairs toward the top. A small cluster of leaves often rises out of the leaf axils.

There are no basal leaves. Stem leaves are alternate, ascending, and densely crowded. Lower stem leaves are linear to inversely lance-shaped, 15 ⁄16″ to 1⅝″ long, and ⅛″ to ¼″ wide. They are attached to the stem on short leaf stalks. The leaf blades are wedge-shaped at the base and angled at the tip, the angle less than 90°. There is sometimes a short, sharp, abrupt point at the tip. The upper and lower surfaces are pale green to grayish green and are moderately to densely covered with straight, stiff, sharp, appressed hairs. They may be sparsely covered with gland-tipped hairs.

Upper stem leaves are similar, linear to narrowly inversely lance-shaped, 9 ⁄16″ to 13 ⁄16″ long, averaging 11 ⁄16″ long, and 1 ⁄16″ to 3 ⁄16″ wide, not becoming much smaller as they ascend the stem. The upper and lower surfaces are sparsely to moderately covered with straight, stiff, sharp, appressed hairs. They not have gland-tipped hairs. The margins are untoothed and flat, not wavy. There are long, straight, stiff, sharp, appressed hairs along the margin at least near the base.

The inflorescence is a cluster of 1 to 30, usually 2 to 16, flower heads at the end of each branch. The flower heads are on 1 ⁄16″ to ⅝″ long stalks that are sparsely to densely rough hairy and may have sparse to dense glandular hairs. The flower heads are subtended by 1 to 7 (or 1 to 3, FNA) inversely lance-shaped, leaf-like bracts.

The whorl of bracts at the base of the flower head (involucre) is cylinder top-shaped to narrowly bell-shaped and 3 ⁄16″ to 5 ⁄16″ wide. There may be 10 to 36 yellow ray florets, though there are usually no more than 24. The strap-like portion of the ray floret is usually ¼″ to ½″ long. There are 12 to 70, usually 23 to 55, yellow disk florets.

The fruit is a 1 ⁄16″ to ⅛″ long achene with 25 to 40 off-white bristles attached to the end. The achene is inversely cone-shaped, with the attachment at the narrow end, and has 6 to 10 ribs.

7″ to 18″

Yellow ray florets, yellow disk florets

Ballard’s goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa var. ballardii) stems and leaves do not have gland-tipped hairs. The upper leaves are oblong. The flower heads are subtended by 1 to 7 or more bracts. The flower head stalks are ½″ to 1⅞″ long.

Leafy false goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa var. foliosa) upper leaves are oblong. The flower heads are subtended by 1 to 7 or more bracts. The flower head stalks are ⅝″ to 1½″ long.

Hairy false goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa var. minor) upper leaves are narrowly to broadly inversely lance-shaped or oblong. The flower heads are subtended by 1 to 7 or more bracts that are greatly reduced in size, usually linear-oblong, and are not leaf-like. The flower head stalks are ⅛″ to 1½″ long or longer.

Hairy false goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa var. villosa) flower heads are rarely subtended by bracts. When they are, those bracts are linear inversely lance-shaped and greatly reduced in size. The flower head stalks are ½″ to 2″ long.

Dry. Open places. Full sun.

July to October

Sources

2, 4, 7, 29, 30.

Native

Plant

Inflorescence

Flower Head

Leaves

Stem

Infructescence