Home/Species/ Few-flower Ragwort

Packera pauciflora

(Pursh) A.& D. Love

Few-flower Ragwort

G5Secure Found in 9 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.128794

Element CodePDAST8H2D0

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomPlantae

PhylumAnthophyta

ClassDicotyledoneae

OrderAsterales

FamilyAsteraceae

GenusPackera

Synonyms

Senecio pauciflorusPursh

Other Common Names

Séneçon pauciflore (FR)

Concept Reference

Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodExpertise without calculation

Review Date2016-09-01

Change Date2016-09-01

Edition Date2013-02-20

Edition AuthorsSusan Spackman Panjabi

Range Extent Comments

This species is known from Canada and the United States. The PLANTS Database (USDA NRCS 2012) reports it from the west from Alaska to Colorado and in the east in the Upper Great Lakes to Newfoundland.

Ecology & Habitat

Description

Packera pauciflora is a glabrous, perennial herb with stems that are 15-40 cm high and arising from a simple or branched rootcrown with fibrous roots. The basal leaves are 3-10 cm long and have long petioles and thick, spade-shaped blades with coarsely toothed margins. The alternate stem leaves, some with a pair of basal lobes, become smaller and sessile upward. Usually, 2-6 erect flower heads are borne in a crowded, terminal inflorescence. Each flower head has a single series of reddish-purple, narrow, pointed involucral bracts that are 6-8 mm long. Disk flowers are orange to reddish. Rays are inconspicuous or lacking. The achene has a pappus at its summit.

Diagnostic Characteristics

Packera debilis and P. indecora have more deeply lobed lower leaves and are generally found at lower elevations.

Habitat

This species is found in subalpine to alpine damp meadows or woods at elevations ranging from 0 to 2,700 meters (Trock, 2020).

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest/WoodlandGrassland/herbaceousAlpine

Other Nations (2)

United StatesNNR

Province	Rank	Native
Alaska	SNR	Yes
Oregon	SNR	Yes
Idaho	SNR	Yes
California	SNR	Yes
Minnesota	SNR	Yes
Michigan	SNR	Yes
Nevada	SNR	Yes
Washington	SNR	Yes
Wyoming	S2	Yes

CanadaN5

Province	Rank	Native
Island of Newfoundland	S2	Yes
British Columbia	S5	Yes
Saskatchewan	SH	Yes
Quebec	S3	Yes
Yukon Territory	S4	Yes
Alberta	S3	Yes
Northwest Territories	S3	Yes
Ontario	S1	Yes
Labrador	S4	Yes

Plant Characteristics

Economic Value (Genus)No

Roadless Areas (9)

California (7)

Area	Forest	Acres
Dome	Stanislaus National Forest	11,085
Eagle	Stanislaus National Forest	16,116
Hall Natural Area	Inyo National Forest	5,236
Log Cabin Saddlebag	Inyo National Forest	15,165
Mt. Olsen	Inyo National Forest	2,161
Rock Creek West	Inyo National Forest	3,626
Sherwin	Inyo National Forest	3,140

Washington (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Long Swamp	Okanogan National Forest	66,344
Tiffany	Okanogan National Forest	22,045

References (4)

Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2006b. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 20. Magnoliophyta: Asteridae, part 7: Asteraceae, part 2. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxii + 666 pp.
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
Trock, D.K. 2020. Flora of North America. <i>Packera pauciflora</i>. Accessed: September 20, 2022. http://floranorthamerica.org/Packera_pauciflora