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Erigeron hyssopifolius — hyssop-leaved fleabane

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Facts

Hyssop-leaved fleabane is a small native perennial of cliffs, ledges and river gravel in areas of high-pH bedrock. It has a northerly distribution, being found mostly in Canada, but dipping into Maine and Vermont. It often grows in rock crevices and in areas of heavy ice scouring.

Habitat

Cliffs, balds, or ledges, ridges or ledges, shores of rivers or lakes

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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Characteristics

Habitat
  • terrestrial
  • wetlands
New England state
  • Maine
  • Vermont
Leaf type
leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
Leaf arrangement
  • alternate: there is one leaf per node along the stem
  • basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
Leaf blade edges
the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
Flower type in flower heads
the flower head has tubular disk flowers in the center and ray flowers, these often strap-shaped, around the periphery
Ray flower color
  • pink to red
  • white
Tuft or plume on fruit
  • at least a part of the plume is made up of fine bristles
  • there is no plume, or the plume is made up of scales, awns, a crown, or a rim
Spines on plant
the plant has no spines
Leaf blade length
10–30 mm
Show all characteristics
  • Flowers

    Bract cycle number
    • there are three or more cycles of bracts
    • there are two main cycles of bracts
    Bract outer side hair type
    the bracts are hairy, with simple hairs on their outer surface
    Bract outer side hairs
    the bracts are hairy on their outer surfaces
    Bract shape
    • the main bracts are elliptic (widest near the middle and tapered towards the base and tip)
    • the main bracts are lanceolate (widest above the base, then taper narrowly towards the tip)
    • the main bracts are linear (long and very narrow)
    Bract spines
    the bracts have no spines
    Bract texture
    the bracts have a similar texture to a leaf
    Bracts
    the bracts in separate cycles are similar or gradually changing from the outer to inner cycles
    Disk flower color
    yellow
    Disk flower lobe number
    5
    Disk flower reproductive parts
    the disk flower has both pollen- and seed-producing parts
    Disk flower shape
    the disk flower is tube-shaped (cylindrical), or gradually widening like a funnel
    Disk width
    3–20 mm
    Flower head number
    • each flowering stem has four or more flower heads on it
    • each flowering stem has only one to three flower heads on it
    Flower head outer flowers
    at the outer edge of the flower head, each flower has a single enlarged lobe or strap
    Flower head platform
    the base has no bristles or papery scales
    Flower head platform surface
    NA
    Flower head position
    • each of the flower heads is separate on its own peduncle (stalk), not clustered in groups
    • some or all the flower heads are grouped in clusters of two or more
    Flower head profile
    • the disk is conical across the top
    • the disk is flat or nearly flat across the top
    Flower head shape
    • the flower head is hemispherical (like the bottom half of a sphere)
    • the flower head is shaped like a cone with the point up
    Flower type in flower heads
    the flower head has tubular disk flowers in the center and ray flowers, these often strap-shaped, around the periphery
    Height of flower head base
    4–6 mm
    Inflorescence branching (Solidago)
    NA
    Inflorescence shape
    • NA
    • the inflorescence is not flat-topped but appears rounded, with some flower heads distinctly higher than others
    Number of bracts at flower head base
    30–150
    Ovary cross-section
    the ovary is compressed (flattened)
    Ovary hair type
    the ovary has no hairs on it
    Ovary hairs
    the ovary has no hairs on it
    Ovary lines or ribs
    there are four to six lines or ribs visible on the ovary
    Ovary profile
    • in profile, the ovary is oblong (roughly rectangular but rounded at the ends)
    • in profile, the ovary is roughly egg-shaped, but widest above the middle
    Peduncle hair type
    the hairs on the peduncles are simple (not branched), don’t have glands, and are not woolly
    Peduncle hairs
    the peduncles are hairy
    Peduncle length
    12–150 mm
    Ray flower color
    • pink to red
    • white
    Ray flower reproductive parts
    the ray flowers have carpels or stamens, but not both
    Ray flowers
    • 16-25
    • 26-50
    Ray length
    4–10 mm
    Reproductive system
    some of the flowers on the plant have only carpels or stamens, while others have both carpels and stamens
    Scale tip
    NA
    Smaller bracts at base of bracts
    there is a cycle of much smaller bracts outside the cycle of larger and longer bracts
    Style branch number
    the style has two branches
    Width of flower head base
    6–12 mm
  • Fruits or seeds

    Number of pappus parts
    11 or more
    Ovary length in developed fruit
    1.3–1.6 mm
    Seed hairs uniform
    there are two distinct lengths of pappus hairs
    Seed tuft type
    • NA
    • the pappus is made of very fine hairs or bristles
    Top of disk flower ovary
    NA
    Tuft or plume on fruit
    • at least a part of the plume is made up of fine bristles
    • there is no plume, or the plume is made up of scales, awns, a crown, or a rim
  • Glands or sap

    Ovary glands
    there are no visible glands on the ovary
  • Growth form

    Growth form
    the plant has one or more free-standing stems
    Plant lifespan
    the plant is perennial, it shows evidence of previous year's leaves, stems or stem bases
    Spines on plant
    the plant has no spines
    Underground organs
    • the plant has a caudex (the root mass is firm and hardened at the top)
    • the plant has a rhizome (a horizontal underground stem with roots growing from it)
    • there are only slender roots on the plant
  • Leaves

    Hairs on underside of leaf blade
    • the underside of the leaf is fuzzy or hairy
    • the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    • the upper side of the leaf is fuzzy or hairy
    • the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Leaf arrangement
    • alternate: there is one leaf per node along the stem
    • basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
    Leaf blade base
    the leaf has no petiole
    Leaf blade base shape
    the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    Leaf blade edges
    the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
    Leaf blade hairs
    the leaf blade has simple hairs with no glands, and not tangled or wooly
    Leaf blade length
    10–30 mm
    Leaf blade shape
    • the leaf blade is linear (very narrow with more or less parallel sides)
    • the leaf blade is oblanceolate (lance-shaped, but with the widest point above the middle of the leaf blade)
    Leaf blade surface colors
    there is no noticeable color variation on the upper surface of the leaf
    Leaf blade tip
    • the tip of the leaf blade is acute (sharply pointed)
    • the tip of the leaf blade is obtuse (bluntly pointed)
    Leaf blade veins
    the leaf blade has one main vein running from the base towards the tip
    Leaf blade width
    1–5 mm
    Leaf disposition
    the leaves are nearly similar in size, prominence of teeth, and length of stalks throughout the stem
    Leaf spines
    there are no spines on the leaf edges
    Leaf stalk
    the leaves have no leaf stalks, but attach directly to the stem
    Leaf tufts in axils
    there are clusters of smaller leaves growing out of axils
    Leaf type
    leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
    Specific leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
  • Place

    Habitat
    • terrestrial
    • wetlands
    New England state
    • Maine
    • Vermont
    Specific habitat
    • cliffs, balds, or ledges
    • ridges or ledges
    • shores of rivers or lakes
  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Leaves on stem
    there is at least one full leaf above the base of the flowering stem
    Stem internode hair direction
    • the hairs are pressed flat against the plant, pointing either towards the plant's tip or towards it's base
    • the hairs point mostly upwards to outwards
    Stem internode hair type
    the hairs on the stem are plain, without glands or branches, and not tangled
    Stem internode hairs
    • the stem has hairs between the nodes
    • the stem has no hairs between the nodes
    Stem wings
    the stem does not have wings on it

Wetland status

Usually occurs in wetlands, but occasionally in non-wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACW)

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
absent
Maine
present
Massachusetts
absent
New Hampshire
absent
Rhode Island
absent
Vermont
present

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

Maine
rare (S-rank: S2), special concern (code: SC)
Vermont
rare (S-rank: S2)

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

4.  Erigeron hyssopifolius Michx. N

hyssop-leaved fleabane. ME, VT; also reported from NH by Cronquist(1947), but specimens are unknown. Cliffs, gorges, and river shore ledges in regions of high-pH bedrock.

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Ionactis linariifolia:
leaf blades coriaceous, stiff, involucres 6-9 mm long, the involucral bracts with prominent, indurate keels, and body of cypsela mostly 3.5-4 mm long (vs. E. hyssopifolius, with leaf blades herbaceous, soft, involucres 4-6 mm tall, the involucral bracts with poorly developed keels, and body of cypsela 1.3-1.6 mm long).

Family

Asteraceae

Genus

Erigeron