Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - Long-bearded hawkweed

LONG-BEARDED HAWKWEED

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Hieracium longipilum Torr.

Russell County, Kansas

Perennial

Height: 2-6 feet

Family: Asteraceae - Sunflower Family

Flowering Period: July, August, September

Stems:

Erect, stout, densely covered with brownish, bristly hairs 1/2 to 1 inch long, more so toward base of stem.

Leaves:

Mostly basal, often crowded, simple, oblanceolate to spatulate, 4 to 12 inches long, to 1.5 inch wide, densely long-hairy; margins entire; stem leaves gradually reduced, those on upper 1/2 of stem bract-like.

Inflorescences:

Weakly raceme-like clusters of few heads, elongate, terminal, on short, hairy stalks; heads about 3/4 inch wide; bracts linear-lanceolate, in single series; tips pointed, with conspicuous, black, glandular hairs.

Flowers:

Ray-like florets 40-90, yellow.

Fruits:

Achenes, tapered towards summit, tipped with few brown bristles about equal in length, enclosing small seed.

Habitat:

Dry, upland prairies, open woods and open sandy sites.

Distribution:

East 1/2 of Kansas.

Uses:

In ancient and medieval times, hawkweed was used medicinally to treat indigestion, burns, and snakebites.

Comments:

The common name comes from an ancient belief that hawks consumed plants of this genus to enhance their eyesight.