Herrickia horrida

Illustrator: Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey

Copyright: Flora of North America Association

Subshrubs or perennials, 30–60 cm cespitose; rhizomes woody, elongate, branched. Stems 1–20+, erect, branched, straight to ± flexuous, long- and short-stipitate-glandular, more densely so distally. Leaves cauline, proximal reduced and deciduous by flowering, coriaceous, rigid; sessile; blades oblong to oblong-ovate or ovate to nearly orbiculate, 10–45 × 4–30 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases cordate-clasping, main veins marked, margins sharply spinulose-serrate, scabridulous, short-stipitate-glandular, apices acute to obtuse, mucronate, faces scabrellous, ± short-stipitate-glandular. Heads 1–30+ in open corymbiform arrays or borne singly at ends of long, leafy branches. Peduncles 0.3–4 cm, densely stipitate-glandular; bracts 0–3, often proximal to heads and appearing to be part of involucres, foliaceous, margins entire or ± serrate. Involucres campanulate, 8.5–12 mm. Phyllaries (ca. 40) in 5–6 series, spreading, sometimes purplish tinged (inner or bases of outer), keeled, linear-lanceolate to oblanceolate, lance-oblong, or lanceolate, coriaceous, margins narrowly scarious, hyaline, sometimes purplish distally (inner), erose, short-stipitate-glandular along foliaceous distal parts, apices acute and spinulose to long-cuminate (innermost), often purplish-margined, faces short-stipitate-glandular; outer apically broadly foliaceous 1/3–9/10 (foliaceous part often wider than base), inner usually narrowly foliaceous 1/3 or less, sometimes green parts lanceolate apically along midnerves or none. Ray florets 17–20; laminae purple, 15–22 × 1.2–2 mm. Disc florets ca. 29; corollas yellow turning purplish, barely ampliate, ca. 8.2 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats (ca. 2.5 mm), lobes erect to spreading, triangular, 0.6–0.8 mm. Cypselae brown, fusiform, ± compressed [mature size not available], ribs 7–10, glabrous; pappi of (ca. 40) tawny bristles 7–7.5 mm. 2n = 18.

Phenology: Flowering Jul–Sep.
Habitat: Rocky hillsides, steep, narrow, brushy, canyon bottoms, with Quercus, Juniperus, Fallugia, and Forestiera
Elevation: 1600–2900 m

Distribution

• Generated Map
• Legacy Map

Colo., N.Mex.

Discussion

Of conservation concern.

Herrickia horrida is known only from the Animas River basin, in Colfax County, northern New Mexico, and Las Animas County, southern Colorado.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.