Kingdom Plantae Family Asteraceae Tribe Senecioneae Scientific name Packera pauciflora | Order Asterales Subfamily Asteroideae Genus Packera Rank Species | |
Similar Packera streptanthifolia, Packera eurycephala, Packera paupercula, Packera bolanderi, Packera layneae | ||
Packera pauciflora is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common name alpine groundsel. It is native to northern North America, where it can be found in parts of western and eastern Canada and the northwestern United States. It grows in subalpine and alpine climates, such as mountain meadows.
It is a perennial herb producing one or more erect stems up to half a meter tall from a thick caudex and fibrous root system. The basal leaves have thick, toothed blades up to 4 centimeters long, and those higher on the stem have smaller, more dissected leaves. The inflorescence bears a single flower head or an umbel-shaped array of up to 6 heads. Each head has green to reddish or purplish phyllaries, many disc florets, and often several ray florets. The florets may be most any shade of red, orange, or yellow.