9593.000 Launaea Cass.

Description of the genus

Annual, biennial or perennial herbs, sometimes acaulescent. Leaves (in ours) in basal rosettes, usually appearing after the flowers. Receptacle without scales. Phyllaries 2-several-seriate, becoming swollen and corky towards base; innermost ± equal, usually greatly exceeding the outer. Florets yellow, the ligule often purplish or red outside. Achenes (in ours) truncate at apex, without a beak and also without ascending hairs or ascending rough projections on the ribs or margins above. Pappus many-seriate.

Derivation of name: named after J Mordant de Launay (1750-1816), French author and editor of horticultural works and librarian at the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris.

Worldwide: 30 species extending from the Canary Is to South Africa, East Asia and the West Indies

Zimbabwe: 3 taxa.

Launaea nana

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsContent
cornuta (Hochst. ex Oliv. & Hiern) C. JeffreyN,E,SDescription, Image
nana (Baker) Chiov.N,W,C,EDescription, Image
rarifolia (Oliv. & Hiern) Boulos var. rarifolia N,W,C,EDescription, Image

Other sources of information about Launaea:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Launaea
Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Launaea
Flora of Malawi: Launaea
Flora of Mozambique: Launaea
Flora of Zambia: Launaea

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Launaea
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Launaea
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Launaea
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Launaea
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Launaea
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Launaea
JSTOR Plant Science: Launaea
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Launaea
Plants of the World Online: Launaea
Tropicos: Launaea
Wikipedia: Launaea

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Zimbabwe: Genus page: Launaea.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=1577, retrieved 19 March 2024

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