Kingdom Plantae Tribe Heliantheae Scientific name Chaenactis douglasii Rank Species | Order Asterales Genus Chaenactis Higher classification Chaenactis | |
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Similar Chaenactis, Daisy family, Dieteria canescens, Antennaria dimorpha, Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus | ||
Chaenactis douglasii is a North American species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name Douglas' dustymaiden.
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Distribution
The plant is western Canada and the western United States from British Columbia to Saskatchewan, and south to California to New Mexico, with a few isolated populations in Nebraska and the Dakotas. It grows in a wide variety of habitats, including harsh environments such as rock fields in alpine climates in the Sierra Nevada, and disturbed areas such as roadsides.
Description
Chaenactis douglasii is a variable herb, generally a perennial. It grows erect to a maximum height near 50 or 60 centimeters (20–24 inches), with one to many stems coated in cobwebby hairs. The woolly or hairy leaves may be up to 15 centimeters (6 inches) long and are divided intricately into many lobes with curled or twisted tips.
The inflorescence produces one or more flower heads, each up to about 2 centimeters long. The flower head is lined with flat, glandular, blunt-pointed phyllaries and contains several white or pinkish tubular flowers with protruding anthers.
The fruit is an achene about a centimeter long including its pappus of scales.
Uses
Some Plateau Indian tribes used this plant as a dressing for burns, wounds, and sores.
