Ageratina occidentalis
| Ageratina occidentalis | |
|---|---|
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| Regional Parks Botanic Garden Berkeley, California | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Ageratina |
| Species: | A. occidentalis
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| Binomial name | |
| Ageratina occidentalis | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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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]
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[edit]
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 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[edit]
- ^ "NatureServe Explorer - Ageratina occidentalis". NatureServe Explorer Ageratina occidentalis. NatureServe. 2022-06-22. Retrieved 22 Jun 2022.
- ^ "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 Note that this website has been superseded by World Flora Online
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Ageratina occidentalis". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521866453 (hardback), ISBN 9780521685535 (paperback). pp 39
- ^ 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.
External links[edit]
Media related to Ageratina occidentalis at Wikimedia Commons- United States Department of Agriculture Plants Profile
- Ageratina occidentalis in the CalPhotos photo database, University of California, Berkeley
