Ageratina occidentalis

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Ageratina occidentalis
J20160616-0075--Ageratina occidentalis--RPBG (27546705360).jpg
Regional Parks Botanic Garden
Berkeley, California
Status TNC G4.svg
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Ageratina
Species:
A. occidentalis
Binomial name
Ageratina occidentalis
Synonyms [2]
  • Eupatorium occidentale Hook.
  • Eupatorium berlandieriA.Gray
  • Eupatorium oregonumNutt.
  • Kyrstenia occidentalis(Hook.) Greene

Ageratina occidentalis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name western snakeroot or western eupatorium. [3] It is native to the western United States where it grows in several types of habitat. It is found in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Utah. [4]

Contents

Ageratina occidentalis is a rhizomatous perennial herb growing fuzzy green or purple stems to a maximum height near 70 centimeters. Its leaves are glandular and triangular, with serrated edges. The inflorescence is a dense cluster of fuzzy flower heads containing long, protruding disc florets in shades of white, pink, and blue. There are no ray florets. The fruit is an achene a few millimeters long with a rough, bristly pappus. [5]

Etymology

Ageratina is derived from Greek meaning 'un-aging', in reference to the flowers keeping their color for a long time. This name was used by Dioscorides for a number of different plants. [6]

The name Eupatorium comes from the Greek king Mithridates VI Eupator, who is said to have discovered that a species in the genus could be used as an antidote to a common poison. [7]

References

  1. ↑ "NatureServe Explorer - Ageratina occidentalis". NatureServe Explorer Ageratina occidentalis. NatureServe. 2022-06-22. Retrieved 22 Jun 2022.
  2. ↑ "Ageratina occidentalis (Hook.) R.M.King & H.Rob.". The Global Compositae Checklist (GCC)– via The Plant List. Note that this website has been superseded by World Flora Online
  3. ↑ Nesom, Guy L. (2006). "Ageratina occidentalis". 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.
  4. ↑ "Ageratina occidentalis". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
  5. ↑ Keil, David J.; Powell, A. Michael (1993). "Ageratina occidentalis". In Hickman, James C. (ed.). The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University and Jepson Herbaria.
  6. ↑ Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9780521866453 (hardback), ISBN   9780521685535 (paperback). pp 39
  7. ↑ Blackwell, Laird R. (2006). Great Basin Wildflowers: A Guide to Common Wildflowers of the High Deserts of Nevada, Utah, and Oregon (A Falcon Guide) (1st ed.). Guilford, Conn.: Morris Book Publishing, LLC. p. 56. ISBN   0-7627-3805-7. OCLC   61461560.
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