Texas Flowers in Natural Colors

by Eula Whitehouse

COMPOSITE FAMILY (Compositae)

BALDWIN’S IRONWEED

Flowers crowded into heads surrounded by bracts; outer flowers often strap-shaped and are called ray flowers; inner flowers are tubular and are called disk flowers; sometimes flowers are all of one type; calyx usually modified into bristles or awns (pappus); petals united, tubular, 4-5-lobed; stamens 5, anthers united into a tube; styles 2-lobed; ovary 1-celled, inferior. (See [p. xii].)

Baldwin’s Ironweed (Vernonia baldwinii) has broad, flat-topped clusters of purple heads. It forms a pleasing contrast to the abundant yellow flowers of the summer months. The plant is a hardy perennial and grows in ditches and river bottoms from Central Texas to Iowa. The stems are 3-4 feet high and conspicuously leafy. The ironweeds get their common name from the fact that the stems are very hard and difficult for farmers to chop down.

About one-fifth of the plants found in Texas belong to the composite family. It is generally divided into groups or tribes, the more important being the ironweed, mist-flower, aster, everlasting, sunflower, bitterweed, dog-fennel, and thistle groups. The composites in this book are grouped together in tribes in the above order, but the tribes are not separated or differentiated. Identification of composites is much easier if the resemblance to a particular group can be noted.

BLUE MIST-FLOWER BLUFF THOROUGHWORT

Bluff Thoroughwort (Eupatorium ageratifolium) is a widely branched shrub of the rocky hillsides of Central and West Texas. The bushes are covered with flat-topped clusters of pale-pink or white flowers. The long, protruding styles, which are divided into two recurved parts, have given the name of mist-flower to this and other plants of the group.

Milk-sick plant (Eupatorium ageratoides) is a closely related plant which causes in cattle a disease called “trembles.” The milk from affected cows will cause sickness and death among humans. The late-flowering thoroughwort (Eupatorium serotinum) is very abundant in river bottoms throughout the state. Yankee-weed (Eupatorium compositifolium) grows in big feathery clumps often 10 feet high. It is a pernicious weed in East Texas and soon covers cut-over pine lands. The dried flower-tops of several species were used by pioneers as fever medicines. One of these plants was called Joe-pye weed in honor of the Indian doctor, Joe Pye.

Blue Mist-Flower (Conoclinium coelestinum) is sometimes called ageratum and is used for a summer and fall border plant. It grows in moist, shaded places from Central Texas to New Jersey.

PRAIRIE BLAZING STAR DWARF GOLDENROD TALL GOLDENROD

Prairie Blazing Star. Button Snakeroot (Laciniaria punctata) is sometimes called liatris from the scientific group to which these plants are sometimes referred. A similar prairie blazing star is called gay-feather. On the dry prairies in the western part of the state the blazing star has short stems and short spikes of flowers; but where moisture is more abundant, the plants are one to two feet high. The plant does well in cultivation and is easily grown from the seed. It ranges from Southern Canada to Texas and New Mexico.

The stems are closely covered with the narrow leaves, which are marked with minute glandular dots. The spikes are densely covered with long, narrow heads of purple flowers. There are only a few star-shaped tubular flowers in a head. The seeds are widely scattered by their crown of plumose bristles. The lovely spikes are often dried for winter bouquets.

Many eastern blazing stars are found in the woods of East Texas, where they make showy displays from July to October. They are called snakeroots from their reputed property of curing snake-bites. A tea made from the plant will cause profuse perspiration; the perspiration was probably responsible for the reported snake-bite cures. They are also called devil’s bit or devil’s bite, because of the bitten-off appearance of the rootstock. The rootstock was considered such a powerful remedy for human ills that the devil bit off a part for spite.

Tall Goldenrod (Solidago altissima) grows 2-8 ft. high, has rough leaves which are sharply toothed and prominently triple-nerved, and is topped by dense clusters of yellow flowers. Most of the goldenrods are widely distributed in North America; the tall goldenrod is abundant in dry soil from Maine to Nebraska and Texas.

Gray, Field, or Dwarf Goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis) has flower heads all turned to one side of the branches which top the slender wand-like stems. The stems are one half to two feet high. This is one of the most abundant goldenrods in the central and western parts of the state from July to November and ranges from Canada to Florida and Arizona.

In Texas the goldenrods are usually found only in moist soil, many eastern species growing profusely in East Texas. The three-nerved goldenrod (Solidago trinervata) is the common one in Southwest Texas.

STIFF GOLDENROD

Stiff or Hard-Leaved Goldenrod (Solidago rigida) is one of about thirty-five goldenrods found in the state. It belongs to the type which is responsible for the common name, as the yellow flowers are in heads arranged in rod-like clusters at the top of the stem. The scientific name of “Solidago,” meaning “to make whole,” had its origin in the healing properties of certain species.

The stiff goldenrod grows in dry rocky or sandy soil east of the Rocky Mountains from Southern Canada to Texas. It grows 1½-2 feet high and has broad leaves 1-2 inches long. Lindheimer’s goldenrod (Solidago lindheimeriana) is a similar stout, leafy-stemmed plant which is abundant in Central Texas and ranges to Kansas and Mexico. Bigelow’s goldenrod (Solidago bigelovii) is another species with rod-like clusters. It is found in the mountainous regions of West Texas and New Mexico.

BROOM-WEED

Broom-Weed. Kindling-Weed (Amphiachyris dracunculoides) is a pasture pest in the southern part of the Great Plains region. The slender stem is unbranched near the base, but above the middle the numerous spreading branches form a flat-topped plant which bears many small heads of yellow flowers. The plants are often 2-4 feet high and grow in dense masses. It has been used as a broom by early settlers, Mexicans, and children at play. The resinous foliage of the dried plants was also highly valued for kindling fires.

The broom-weed is closely related to the rabbit-brush which is so abundant in West Texas and New Mexico. The Texas rabbit-brush (Gutierrezia texana) of West Texas is so much like the broom-weed that only a close observer can distinguish them. Both have 5-8 flowers with strap-shaped corollas in the outer part of the head and a few tubular flowers in the center; both bloom in the late summer and fall.

CAMPHOR DAISY TEXAS GUMWEED

Camphor Daisy (Heterotheca subaxillaris), so called because of the camphor-like odor of the rough foliage, is a common summer pest to the farmer. The plants often grow 3 feet high and are much branched, bearing heads of golden-yellow flowers nearly an inch across. The upper leaves are broad and clasping, but the lower are narrowed at the base. The scientific name refers to the dissimilar fruits of the ray and disk flowers, those of the ray flowers having no bristles. It ranges from Delaware to Arizona and Mexico.

Texas Gumweed (Grindelia texana) belongs to a group easily recognized because of its sticky, bur-like heads and thick leaves. This one is common on rocky limestone slopes in Central Texas in the fall and ranges to Southwest Missouri. The wand-like stems, covered with the overlapping leaves, are topped by large heads of yellow flowers. Many gumweeds are found in Texas. Some of them were used to relieve colds, asthma, and rheumatism.

BIG GUMWEED

Big Gumweed. Saw-Leaf Daisy (Prionopsis ciliata) is easily recognized by its straight, stiff stalks which are closely covered with broad oval leaves. Dense masses of the sentinel-like plants may be seen along fence-rows in North-central and West Texas in August and September. It ranges north to Kansas and Missouri. The stems are topped by short clusters of large heads, 2-3 inches broad. The leaves are thick, gummy, and closely beset with bristle-tipped teeth. Sometimes an injury to the stem may cause it to become widely branched.

The scientific name means “resembling a saw” and refers to the leaf-margins. It is not a true gumweed but has similar bur-like heads. It differs from the gumweeds in having several unequal hair-like bristles on the seed, whereas the seeds of gumweeds have 2-8 stiff bristles.

YELLOW SLEEPY DAISY

Yellow Sleepy Daisy (Xanthisma texanum) is a yellow daisy with lazy habits, for the heads do not open until noon. It is close kin to the white lazy daisy (Aphanostephus skirrobasis), and the two may often be found growing in the same fields. The large heads of lemon-yellow flowers are quite showy and attractive, 1½ inches broad, solitary at the ends of the branches. The ray flowers are narrow, about one inch long, and conspicuously lance-shaped at the tips.

This plant blooms in the late spring and summer and is found on sandy prairies or open woods in Central Texas. It is an annual, the stem branched above, commonly about 1-1½ feet high. The leaves are glossy green, somewhat narrow, and one to two inches long. It has been introduced into cultivation in the North and East. The name is Greek, meaning “dyed yellow.”

BERLANDIER’S GOLDEN ASTER IRON FLOWER

Berlandier’s Golden Aster (Chrysopsis berlandieri) is common on roadside banks and prairies of Central and West Texas. Growing from a perennial root, the branched stems sprawl in clumps about a foot broad and are thick with yellow heads soon after a heavy rain. The heads are nearly an inch broad, the flowers all yellow. The leaves are whitish and somewhat woolly. It blooms in the summer and fall.

Spiny-Leaved Yellow Aster. Iron Flower (Sideranthus spinulosus) has yellow heads much like the preceding, but the leaves are quite different, being divided into narrow segments which are bristle-pointed rather than spiny as the name indicates. “Sideranthus” means “iron flower.” It is very abundant on prairies and hills in the western part of the state and ranges to Canada and Mexico. It blooms from March to October. The iron flowers are often called gold daisies. The southern iron flower (Sideranthus australis) is common in Southwest Texas.

WHITE LAZY DAISY OAK-LEAVED FLEABANE DAISY

White Lazy Daisy (Aphanostephus skirrobasis) grows very abundantly in sandy soil in spring and summer. It ranges from Kansas to Mexico and Florida. The morning traveller does not appreciate its beauty, for it is truly a lazy daisy, not opening its heads until nearly noon. The plants are usually branched and grow 6-18 inches high. The large, showy heads are 1-2 inches across and are usually long-stalked. Unlike those of many other daisies, the seeds are not topped by slender bristles but have an inconspicuous crown, as is denoted by the scientific name, which is Greek for “faint crown.”

Oak-Leaved Fleabane Daisy (Erigeron quercifolius) is very abundant in the spring in the East Texas woods and ranges through the Southern States. The lower leaves resemble oak leaves, but those on the stem are narrow and pointed. The numerous fleabane daisies in the state may be readily recognized by means of the many, very narrow ray flowers which are usually white, pale pink, or pale lavender. Kiss-me-and-I’ll-tell-you (Erigeron annuus) is a taller daisy and is very abundant in East Texas.

DWARF WHITE ASTER DWARF BLUE ASTER

Dwarf Blue Aster (Keerlia bellidiflora) is a shade-loving, sprawling plant growing in moist soil in Central Texas. Its small heads, less than half an inch across, have the aster habit of closing at night and opening in bright light. The outer ray flowers are bluish-lavender, and the tubular inner flowers are yellow. It blooms from late March to May.

Dwarf White Aster (Chaetopappa asteroides) is a very small and wiry plant, growing two to ten inches high and becoming much branched with age. The small narrow heads with white rays and yellow disk flowers are less than half an inch broad. The leaves are narrow, commonly broader about the middle, and about half an inch long. The scientific name refers to the bristles on the seed. It is very abundant in sandy soil throughout the state and ranges to Missouri and Mexico. It blooms from March until early summer.

ROADSIDE ASTER. BLACKWEED

Blackweed. Roadside Aster (Aster exilis) is probably the least showy of the asters but is very abundant in Texas. It ranges from Kansas to Texas and Florida. The white, daisy-like heads may be noted against the dark-green foliage in roadside ditches, or it may appear as a violet haze along the highway. Although it is considered one of the common lawn pests in the fall, yet even there it is a thing of beauty; for when the slender stems are cut, numerous branches spread out from the base, and soon the grass is studded with the tiny white or lavender heads. Keepers of bees on the coastal prairie highly prize it as the source of their most palatable honey.

Spiny Aster (Aster spinosus) is quite similar to the roadside aster and has inconspicuous leaves which are sometimes reduced to spines. The flower heads are less than an inch broad with white outer flowers. It forms dense growths in river bottoms and along irrigation ditches and is especially abundant in the vicinity of El Paso.

LATE PURPLE ASTER TANSY ASTER

Late Purple Aster (Aster patens) shows its lovely heads in October and November along the edges of post oak woods throughout the state. It is easily recognized by the short, broad, and roughened leaves on the wand-like stems. The illustration given is that of variety gracilis which is abundant in the vicinity of Fort Worth. Many asters are found in the state, but very few make a conspicuous floral display except along the coastal plain and river bottoms.

Tansy Aster. Dagger-Flower (Machaeranthera tanacetifolia) has leaves much like those of the spiny-leaved yellow aster, but the purple-flowered heads are much larger and very showy, 1-2 inches broad. The heads are surrounded by bracts with green spreading tips. The inner tubular flowers are yellow but soon turn reddish-brown. It ranges from Nebraska to Mexico and California. This is one of the loveliest flowers on the western plains, blooming from May to October.

OIL WILLOW

Narrow-Leaved Baccharis. Oil Willow (Baccharis angustifolia) looks very much like the black willow, to which, however, it bears no relationship. The leaves of baccharis have a resinous texture, and the flowers appear in the late summer and fall. The pollen-bearing flowers are not borne on the same shrub with the seed-bearing flowers. The flowers, all small, inconspicuous, whitish, and tubular, are borne in a narrow head of ovate bracts which soon turn brown.

It is called the oil willow by some of the older residents because it is said to be an indicator of oil, just as the black willow is said to be a good indicator of water. It is also called brittle willow, false willow, and resin willow. It grows in brackish marshes throughout the state and may be found eastward to North Carolina. The soft white plumy bristles on the seed give the shrub the feathery appearance of the Yankee-weed. Along the coast in the southeastern part, the groundsel-tree or pencil-tree (Baccharis halimifolia) is a lovely sight in the fall.

LARGE RABBIT TOBACCO SMALL RABBIT TOBACCO

Large Rabbit Tobacco (Filago prolifera) is a low plant less than six inches high with a few short branches at the top of the stem and sometimes a few at the base. The flowers are small and inconspicuous, being borne in woolly, rather flattened heads which are about half an inch broad. It blooms from January to June and ranges from Texas to South Dakota.

Small Rabbit Tobacco (Filago nivea) is a smaller plant but is more densely clothed with woolly hairs. The minute, ball-like heads are clustered together. Both of these plants are also known as poverty-weed, chewing gum, and ladies’ tobacco. Poverty-weed is a suitable name for them in the sheep-grazing section of Central Texas which has been heavily over-grazed. In many pastures they take the place of grasses as a ground cover. The leaves may be chewed for gum. The rabbit tobacco is closely related to the cudweeds and everlastings. The plantain-leaved everlasting grows in moist woods in East Texas.

SOUTHERN MARSH FLEABANE

Southern Marsh Fleabane (Pluchea purpurascens) grows only in marshes or in continually moist places. The flowers are more rose-colored than purplish, as the name would indicate, and the tawny bristles on the seeds soon give a brownish tint to the heads. It often grows in pleasing combination with the blue mist-flower. It ranges from Texas to Florida and tropical America and blooms in the summer and fall.

The plants are commonly about two feet high, the stems being unbranched below and very leafy. The broad leaves are pointed at the tip and narrowed into stalk-like bases except on the upper part of the stem. The leaf-margins are irregularly toothed. The fragrant flowers are borne in small oblong heads in a flat-topped cluster.

The cudweeds are closely related to the marsh fleabane. They are particularly abundant in the mountains of West Texas, the loveliest one being Wright’s cudweed or everlasting (Gnaphalium wrightii), which has white flowers and foliage.

ROCK DAISY BLACKFOOT DAISY

Prairie Blackfoot Daisy. Mountain Daisy. Rock Daisy (Melampodium cinereum) is very abundant on limestone slopes and in dry soil from Texas to Arkansas, Kansas, and Arizona. The scientific name is from the Greek words meaning “black foot” and refers to the blackened roots and stalks.

Blackfoot Daisy (Melampodium ramosissimum) grows from a black woody base and has many branched stems which form a dense rounded mound one to two feet broad. After sufficient rainfall from early spring until winter, this mound is covered by the saucy heads of white daisy-like flowers. The heads are about three-fourths inch across and have an outer row of 8-11 broad white ray-flowers. This is the most vigorous one of the blackfoot daisies and makes an excellent plant for the rock garden. It grows in Southwest Texas. The seeds are enclosed in a thickened cornucopia-like floral bract which has a flaring rim and many warty projections.

PRAIRIE ZINNIA TEXAS STAR DAISY

Texas Star Daisy. Lindheimer’s Daisy (Lindheimera texana) shows its star-like flower heads early in the spring while the plants are low and the leaves are closely clustered. By June the plants are tall and widely branched above. This plant honors by its name Ferdinand J. Lindheimer, an early settler of New Braunfels and editor of the “Neu Braunfelser Zeitung.” Lindheimer began his collection of Texas plants in 1836 and continued until his death in 1879. With the assistance of Dr. George Engelmann of St. Louis and Dr. Asa Gray of Harvard University, Lindheimer’s collections between 1842 and 1852, representing more than 1400 species of plants, were classified and distributed to the leading herbaria of Europe and America. A part of this collection is owned by the University of Texas Herbarium.

Prairie Zinnia (Zinnia grandiflora) grows in low, rounded clumps from Kansas to Mexico and Arizona and blooms from June to September. The bright yellow ray flowers are nearly round and remain on the seeds. With age they become papery, and the yellow disk flowers turn reddish-brown. The common zinnia in cultivation was introduced from Mexico.

CUT-LEAVED DAISY. ENGELMANN’S DAISY

Cut-Leaved Daisy. Engelmann’s Daisy (Engelmannia pinnatifida) is closely related to the sunflowers but has the daisy habit of closing the flower heads at night and opening them in bright sunlight. It is one of the commonest plants on prairies from Kansas to Louisiana and Arizona and grows in dense patches along roadsides and pastures from April to July.

The rough, hairy plants grow one to three feet high and are topped by broad clusters of long-stalked, showy yellow heads which are 1½-2 inches broad. The divided leaves are short-stalked on the lower part of the stem and on the upper part have clasping basal lobes.

This daisy honors the name of Dr. George Engelmann, an eminent botanist of St. Louis, who died in 1884.

NIGGERHEAD

Niggerhead. Thimble Flower (Ratibida columnaris) is also called Mexican hat, niggertoe, “gallitos,” long-headed or prairie cone-flower, and black-eyed Susan, though the last term is erroneously used. It is a very handsome plant, which is widely distributed on plains from Southern Canada to Arizona, Texas, and Tennessee. In South Texas it is at its best in April and May; in North Texas it is lovely in late May and June.

Numerous erect stems grow from a woody perennial root and are commonly two to two and a half feet high. The long-stalked heads terminate the branches. The leaves are finely divided into long narrow segments, both leaves and stem being somewhat rough.

The showy flowers have drooping, velvety rays which are entirely yellow or reddish-brown or partly colored yellow and brown. The small tubular flowers are brown and are borne on a thimble-shaped or columnar disk which varies greatly in size on different flowers, sometimes being nearly two inches long, but it is usually about an inch long. The disk is gray-green before the flowers open.

The dwarf niggerhead (Ratibida tagetes) is quite similar to the large niggerhead in growth habit and coloring, but it is a smaller plant and has smaller flowers. It is found from Kansas to Mexico on dry plains and blooms a month later than the large niggerhead.

The niggerhead belongs to a small group of showy American plants. It was introduced into European gardens many years ago, whence it later made its way back to American gardens. The niggerhead group is closely related to the black-eyed Susan and other cone-flowers. Several giant yellow-flowered cone-flowers grow in East Texas.

CLASPING-LEAVED CONE-FLOWER BLACK-EYED SUSAN

Clasping-Leaved Cone-Flower (Dracopis amplexicaulis) makes a showy display in roadside ditches from Central Texas to Louisiana and Missouri. It is a handsome plant with smooth branched stems one to two feet high. The slightly drooping rays commonly have brown spots at the base but may be all yellow. It is often called niggerhead or black-eyed Susan, but it may be distinguished from the latter by the thimble-shaped heads, which are green before the brownish disk flowers open. In South Texas it is at its best the latter part of April, but in North Texas June is its best month.

Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) is a common daisy of the plains region from Southern Canada to Texas and Florida. It is a rough, hairy plant which grows from one to three feet high. Closely resembling it is Rudbeckia bicolor, which has shorter ray flowers marked with a reddish-brown base. The ray flowers of Rudbeckia hirta may also show a dark base. Both are widely cultivated. The group was named in honor of Claus Rudbeck, a Swedish botanist.

SAMPSON’S ROOT. PURPLE CONE-FLOWER

Sampson’s Root. Narrow-Leaved Purple Cone-Flower (Echinachea angustifolia) is easily recognized by the spreading or somewhat drooping rose-colored rays. The heads terminate the stiff, unbranched stems which, like the narrow leaves, are very rough and bristly. The stems grow one to two feet high and are scattered on limestone hillsides but may occasionally be found in dense patches along the roadsides. The leaves have three prominent nerves.

The scientific name is derived from the Greek and refers to the stiff reddish-brown chaff on the flower head. This chaff obscures the brown disk flowers and remains on the heads long after the seeds have fallen. This plant is hard to distinguish from the pale purple cone-flower (Echinachea pallida), which grows in the woods in the eastern part of the state. The latter has longer and more drooping ray flowers. The purple cone-flowers are well known in cultivation.

RAGWEED. LYRE-LEAVED PARTHENIUM

Ragweed. Lyre-Leaved Parthenium (Parthenium lyratum) blooms from early spring until fall in Southwest Texas. This is a smaller plant than the common parthenium (Parthenium hysterophorus), which is widespread in the Gulf States and tropical America. The latter is a widely branched plant two to three feet high and grows in dense masses. They have similar flower clusters with small heads of greenish-white flowers. Neither of these is the ragweed or bloodweed commonly associated with hay fever; however, the common parthenium is listed as a poisonous plant. Wild quinine or feverfew (Parthenium integrifolium), used as a pioneer drug to relieve fever, has been reported from the state.

Several shrubby partheniums are found in West Texas. The most important member of the group is the silver-leaved guayule or rubber plant (Parthenium argentatum), found in West Texas and Mexico. It is a commercial source of rubber but is not yet profitable, as the plants are of slow growth.

COMMON SUNFLOWER

Common Sunflower (Helianthus annuus) has been known in cultivation for many years but is considered native from Minnesota to Texas and Mexico. It is the state flower of Kansas. The stout, erect stems are widely branched above the base and are very sticky, 2-10 feet high. The flower heads, 3-6 inches broad, have many yellow ray flowers about an inch long and numerous tubular disk flowers. It is grown commercially for its fiber and seeds. The seeds make an excellent food for poultry and furnish an oil used in making soap, candles, and salad dressing.

Two other sunflowers are widely distributed in the state. The orange sunflower (Helianthus cucumerifolius) grows in the sandy post oak belt, and the blue-weed (Helianthus ciliaris) is very abundant in West Texas. The latter is a low, branching perennial which is poisonous to sheep.

TEXAS COREOPSIS GOLDEN WAVE CALLIOPSIS

Texas Coreopsis (Coreopsis nuecensis) was first described from plants found on the lower part of the Nueces River. It is quite widespread on the southern coastal prairie from March to May. It may be distinguished from other annual species of coreopsis by the circle of reddish-brown marks near the base of the yellow rays. The leaves are mostly basal and long-stalked.

Golden Wave. Drummond’s Coreopsis (Coreopsis drummondii) has showy, long-stalked heads, about 2 in. broad. They are borne on widely branched plants about a foot high. The leaves are divided into broad segments, and both leaves and stems have scattered soft hairs. It is very abundant on sandy coastal prairies in April and May and is well known in cultivation.

Calliopsis. Prairie Coreopsis (Coreopsis cardaminefolia) is a late-blooming annual plant, the flowers appearing in North Texas about the middle of June. It ranges from Kansas to Mexico and Louisiana. This plant greatly resembles the golden coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), which is abundant on the coastal prairies in March and April. “Coreopsis” is derived from the Greek, meaning “bug-like,” and refers to the seed. The plants are often called tickseeds.

FALSE COREOPSIS

False Coreopsis. Fine-Leaved Thelesperma (Thelesperma trifidum) is sometimes erroneously called black-eyed Susan. It closely resembles the coreopsis when the flowers are in the bud stage. The flowers may readily be distinguished from those of the coreopsis because the ray flowers are not marked with a brown spot at the base and are divided into three equal lobes at the tip. The ray flowers of the coreopsis are commonly divided into four lobes, the two lateral being shorter than the two middle lobes. The leaves are finely divided into long, narrow segments.

This is one of the most widely distributed plants on the prairies from Mexico to Colorado, South Dakota, and Missouri. The yellow of Central Texas landscapes in late April and May is due to thelesperma. Scattered plants continue to bloom through the summer and fall. The plants grow 1-2 feet high and become widely branched. The disk flowers are a reddish-brown.

PLAINS PAPER-FLOWER

Plains Paper-Flower (Psilostrophe villosa) is another western plant which has foliage covered with a dense white woolly coat of hairs. This hairy coat is a plant device for enabling it to withstand dry growth conditions. There are only three or four ray flowers which are much broader than long and are conspicuously three-lobed. The heads are densely clustered on short branches at the top of the stems, which are from six inches to two feet high.

Near El Paso is found the lovely western paper-flower or Cooper’s psilostrophe (Psilostrophe cooperi). It grows in spreading clumps about two feet broad and bears long-stalked heads over an inch wide. As the flowers are bright yellow and remain lovely for months, they are often gathered for winter bouquets. Eventually they become white and papery. Psilostrophe tagetinae has somewhat larger flowers than the plains paper-flower and is probably the most abundant paper-flower in the state. When cattle graze upon it for several weeks, they suffer a slow poisoning. The marigold is a close relative, both the African and French marigolds being derived from Mexican plants introduced into cultivation about 1573.

FOUR-NERVED DAISY SILVER-LEAF DAISY

Actinella Daisy. Four-Nerved Daisy (Tetraneuris linearis) grows with small tufts of narrow leaves from a woody perennial root. The heads, which are borne on stalks 2-8 inches long, close at night. The plants often bloom throughout the year in Central and South Texas. They grow on rocky limestone hillsides in Texas and New Mexico. The broad, four-nerved ray flowers form a close border around the conic disk, which is covered with small yellow tubular flowers. The veins of the outer flowers, which give rise to the scientific name, are sometimes purplish.

Silver-Leaf Daisy (Bahia dealbata) is common in the western part of the state into Arizona and Mexico. It grows 1-2 feet high from a woody perennial root and often blooms throughout the year. The long-stalked heads are a little over an inch broad with 9-12 yellow ray flowers. On the silvery-gray stem the few leaves are commonly opposite, broad and short-stalked, with a pair of lateral lobes near the base.

HUISACHE DAISY BITTERWEED

Huisache Daisy (Amblyolepis setigera) is so called because it often forms a carpet of gold under huisache (pronounced wee satch), mesquite, or other chaparral bushes in Southwest-central Texas from March to June. It is also called honey or butterfly daisy and clasping-leaved bitterweed. It has the strong scent common to the bitterweed, but is fragrant in drying. The plants are often loosely branched, growing 6-12 inches high, and the yellow heads are about 1½ inches broad.

Sneezeweed. Fine-Leaved Bitterweed (Helenium tenuifolium) is often found in pastures which have been over-grazed. It has a strong-scented foliage which gives milk a bitter flavor. The ball-shaped mound of disk-flowers (reminding one of camomile) and the few drooping ray flowers, which have a broad 3-toothed edge and a narrow base, are characteristic of the group. The seeds are small and are said to cause sneezing when they are thrown into the air. The bitterweed blooms from May to October and ranges from Texas to Virginia.

INDIAN BLANKET

Indian Blanket. Firewheel. Beautiful Gaillardia (Gaillardia pulchella) is the pride of Texas prairies. The landscape becomes a vivid red and yellow in April, May, and early June when the firewheels are in bloom. It is a highly-prized cultivated plant, and many varieties have been developed. There are several species of gaillardias and many of them are native to Texas. The beautiful one is the most widespread, ranging from Texas to Louisiana, Nebraska, Arizona, and Mexico. The gaillardias are named for a French botanist, Gaillard.

The heads are usually two or three inches across and are long-stalked. Each head has 10-20 broad ray flowers which are sometimes all red but usually are marked with a brilliant yellow across the three lobes. The upper leaves are lance-shaped, and the lower are oblong and marked with a few teeth or lobes. It is an annual plant which is widely branched and grows one to one and a half feet high.

TINY TIM

Tiny Tim. Spreading Thyme-Leaf (Thymophylla polychaeta) is found on sandy prairies from South Texas to Mexico and New Mexico. There are several thyme-leaf species in the state. They may be recognized by their scented foliage and the cup-like base of the flower heads, the bracts of the head being marked with large yellow or orange glands. There is something appealing about the tiny Tim, as the name would indicate. The branching stems with their lacy green leaves form rosettes which are dotted with the yellow daisy-like flowers.

Dwarf Thyme-Leaf. Tiny Tim (Thymophylla pentachaeta) clings to cliffs and rocky hillsides. It is a perennial plant with short stems four to six inches high. The leaves are short and needle-like and are borne in dense clusters around the stem. The flower heads are about half an inch broad. Tiny Tim ranges from Texas to Arizona and Mexico.

DOG’S CAMOMILE

Dog Fennel. Mayweed. Dog’s Camomile (Anthemis cotulla) is a strong-scented herb widely scattered in America, naturalized from Europe. It is very abundant in sandy soil in the eastern part of the state. The plants are widely branched and bear numerous heads about an inch broad. The rays are broad and wide and the disk flowers are yellow. It begins to bloom in Texas in March, but the plants are at their best in May and June. It is close kin to the European camomile, which is used medicinally, a soothing tea being made from the dried ball-shaped heads of yellow flowers.

Closely related to camomile and yarrow are the artemisias, which include many species known as dusty miller, wormwood, sage-brush, and purple sage. The silvery wormwood or thread-leaved sage-brush (Artemisia filifolius) is very abundant in the sandy areas of West Texas and throughout the Rocky Mountain States and Mexico. It blooms from July to October.

YARROW

Yarrow. Woods Milfoil (Achillea millefolium) was named in honor of Achilles, to whom is attributed the discovery of its healing properties. It is supposed to stop bleeding, relieve spasms, produce sweating, and act as a tonic. The woods milfoil is widely distributed in woods in the United States, Europe, and Asia. It makes a nice garden plant, for the lacy fern-like leaves remain green all winter. The stems grow one to two feet high and are topped by the flat flower-cluster. The ray flowers are white or sometimes pale pink or lavender, and the disk flowers are pale yellow.

Plains Yarrow. Woolly Milfoil (Achillea lanulosa) grows in moist places on the plains from Texas to Canada, Mexico, and California. It is very much like the woods yarrow but differs in that it has fewer gray-green leaves and round-topped flower clusters. Its blooming season is a little later than that of the woods yarrow, which blooms in April and May.

TEXAS SQUAW-WEED

Texas Squaw-Weed. Clasping-Leaved Groundsel (Senecio ampullaceus) is an annual plant which grows so abundantly on the sandy prairies of Texas that it forms a carpet of gold for miles and miles. It is one of the earliest spring flowers to bloom in such showy profusion. The plants commonly grow 1½-2 feet high, being branched above and forming flat-topped flower-clusters which are often a foot broad. When quite young, the plants are densely white-woolly but become smooth and shining with age. The irregularly toothed leaves are 3-6 inches long and have a broad clasping base. The groundsel belongs to one of our largest groups of plants, some 1200 species being widely distributed over the earth.

Fine-leaved or woolly groundsel (Senecio filifolius) has woolly leaves divided into narrow segments. The large heads are often in bloom throughout the year in West Texas and New Mexico.

AMERICAN STAR THISTLE

American Star Thistle. Basket Flower (Centaurea americana) is often called spineless thistle because the leaves do not bear spines as do the leaves of its close relative, the purple thistle. It is also known as powder puffs, sweet sultan, and “cardo del valle.” It is a hardy annual which is widely cultivated. Basket flower is the name under which it is known in cultivation—a name which refers to the stiff, straw-colored bracts of the flower head. These bracts are not spiny but are divided at the tip into finger-like projections.

Before the flowers are fully opened, the heads resemble a shaving-brush, and this is a common name frequently applied to this and other thistles. All the flowers are tubular and divided into five long narrow lobes. In one variety the fully-opened flower cluster has an outer border of numerous lavender flowers with cream-colored flowers in the center. There is another variety which has outer flowers a deep rose or reddish purple and center flowers pale pink or rose; sometimes there is little difference in shade between the inner and outer flowers.

The stems are usually branched and grow about two feet high. They are marked with wing-like ridges and are covered with the overlapping, ascending leaves. In Texas the flowers begin to bloom in May and continue into June, being at their best the first week in June. After the flowering season, the foliage becomes yellow and dried, and the old stalks remain conspicuous in the fields for several months. The star thistle is found on plains from Missouri to Louisiana, Mexico, and Arizona. The variety which has reddish-purple flowers is very abundant in the vicinity of Waco and Fort Worth.

The scientific name meaning “of the Centaurs” refers to the use by the Centaurs of certain species for healing. The cornflower or bachelor’s button (Centaurea cyanus) is a well-known garden annual.

WAVY-LEAVED THISTLE PURPLE-THISTLE

Wavy-Leaved Thistle (Carduus undulatus) is the common prairie thistle and is particularly abundant in the vicinity of Fort Worth. It grows only 1-2 feet high, and the upper leaf-surfaces are yellow-green. The heads are nearly twice as large as those of the purple thistle, and the flowers are a lovely lavender color. It ranges from Southern Canada to Texas and Arizona and blooms in Texas from April to June.

Purple Thistle (Carduus austrinus) is the common thistle in the south-central part of the state. It is a tall, much branched plant, 3-4 feet high, with long-stalked heads of purple flowers. The stems are white-woolly, and the leaves are white-felty beneath and dark-green above, wavy-margined, lobed or divided, the segments being tipped with spines. The heads are about 1½ inches high and broad. The numerous light purple flowers are all tubular with narrow lobes. The thistles belong to a large group, its most renowned representative being the Scotch thistle.

NODDING THISTLE

Nodding Thistle. Silver Puffs. Sunbonnet Babies (Thrysanthema nutans) lacks the spines of the true thistles, but other characters show that this interesting little plant is closely related to the thistle group. The leaves form a basal rosette from which grows the slender, leafless flowering stalk bearing the nodding flower head. The lyre-shaped leaves are wavy-margined, dark-green above and white-felty below, 2-4 inches long. The stalk is sometimes 15 inches long but is commonly about 8 inches high. The creamy-white flowers are rather inconspicuous, but as the seeds mature, the soft white bristles spread into a showy whorl. The plants are found in scattered places in rich soil from Central Texas to Mexico.

Closely kin to the nodding thistle is the desert holly (Perezia nana), which has salmon-pink flowers and holly-like leaves. It is a low plant seeking the shelter of creosote bush, yucca, and other shrubs in West Texas.