Al Schneider's Rocky Mountains Plant Descriptions

Ragleaf Bahia
Hymenothrix dissecta
Aster family (Asteraceae)

Bahia (Hymenothrix dissecta) is fairly common in late summer and early fall growing along roadsides and on dry, gravelly or sandy, open sites in the lower mountains. It has an open, airy growth pattern, grows from 8 to 36 inches tall, and has bright golden/yellow flowers, almost always with rounded, short, overlapping and a large mound of flowers. "Bahia" is for Juan Francisco Bahi, Professor of Botany in Barcelona, Spain in the 19th century. "Dissecta," "cut into pieces," refers to the finely cut leaves which occur sparsely along the red/brown stems and more noticeably at the base of the stem. Greek gives us "amaur" for "dark" or "obscure" and "opsis" for "face" or "appearance."


©2012 Jerry Oldenettel

Description

plants with . Stems to 3' tall. Hairy or , . , 2-3 times ternately divided into or segments, somewhat hairy. about 1/5" high, , in 2-3 overlaps. 12-20 about 1/3" long. an , angled, usually . No .

Field Marks

Tall yellow sunflower with hairy, curling flower stems and delicately dissected leaves.

© Al Schneider

An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to the production of seed, within one year, and then dies.

linear -- Long and very narrow like a blade of grass.

achene -- a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. For example, a rose hip holds a few achenes.

disc flowers are those in the center of a sunflower or daisy. Not a ray flower.

ray flowers -- The outer petals of a sunflower or daisy are ray flowers.

Bracts are modified leaves associated with a flower.

Involucre is the name given to the circle or spiral collection of bracts around a flower-cluster.

pappus -- Small scales, bristles or hairs at the top of the seed in Asteraceae. For example, dandelion parachutes. Plural: pappi.

taproot -- The primary decending root of a plant.

Glands are plant structures that secrete liquids, salts or other substances. Glands often appear as hairs with a drop of liquid at the end.

fruit -- any seed-bearing structure in flowering plants. It is formed from the ovary after flowering.

oblong -- Having an elongated form with somewhat parallel sides. Rectangular.

glabrous -- smooth, glossy, having no bristles or hair-like structures. Bald.

leaves alternate along the main stem and are attached singly.

An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem.