Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

CAMPHOR WEED

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Heterotheca subaxillaris (Lam. ) Britton & Rusby

Lincoln County, Kansas

Annual or short-lived perennial

Height: 1-5 feet

Family: Asteraceae - Sunflower Family

Flowering Period: July, August, September,October

Stems:

Erect, sometimes bushy, glandular, spreading- to long-hairy.

Leaves:

Alternate, simple, upper sessile and clasping, lower on stalks, oblong or ovate, up to 4 inches long, 1/2 to 2 inches wide; surfaces rough or hairy; margins toothed or nearly entire; middle and upper leaves progressively reduced in size.

Inflorescences:

Loose, corymb-like cluster of numerous heads; involcural bracts overlapping in 4-6 series, short-hairy, usually glandular.

Flowers:

Conspicuous, 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide; ray florets 20-40, yellow; ligule about 1/5 inch long; disk florets yellow.

Fruits:

Achene of ray flowers triangular, thick, mostly glaborus, pappus absent; achenes of disk flowers flattened, hairy, pappus double, outer row of short scales, inner numerous hair-like bristles.

Habitat:

Open disturbed sites, prairies, open woods, and roadsides; dry sandy or rocky soils.

Distribution:

Principally in west 2/3 of Kansas, but also to the east border in the Kansas River system.

Forage Value:

Livestock will not graze camphor weed.

Comments:

The foliage has a camphor-like aroma.

Camphor weed