Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

CUTLEAF IRONPLANT

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Xanthisma spinulosum (Pursh ) D. R. Morgan & R. L. Hartm.

[=Haplopappus spinulosus (Pursh ) DC.]

[=Machaeranthera pinnatifida (Hook. ) Shinners]

Ottawa County, Kansas

Perennial

Height: 6-20 inches

Family: Asteraceae - Sunflower Family

Flowering Period: May, June, July, August, September

Stems:

Erect or ascending, usually numerous, simple below, branched above, sparsely hairy to glandular-woolly, sometimes glabrous.

Leaves:

Alternate, sessile, oblong to narrowly spatulate in outline, .5 to 2.5 inches long, less than .5 inch wide, pinnately divided into bristle-tipped segments; upper leaves reduced.

Inflorescences:

Heads, several to solitary, about 1/2 inch wide, terminal; bracts linear, overlapping in 4-6 series, bristle-tipped.

Flowers:

Ray florets 15-40, less than 1/2 inch long, yellow; disk florets numerous, corollas yellow.

Fruits:

Achenes, sparsely hairy, tipped with yellowish brown, hair-like bristles, enclosing small seed.

Habitat:

Dry, sandy or gravelly open prairies, pastures, and roadsides.

Distribution:

West 2/3 of Kansas.

Comments:

When dried, this plant has a hard, woody base, thus the name "ironplant". Cutleaf ironplant is hardy and withstands drought well. It has a woody taproot that can grow 3-4 feet long.

Cutleaf ironplant