Senecio COMPOSITAE Ligularia 



34. Senecio Linn. Ragwort WlR'MM (Wang Chiang Nan Shu) 



Herbs (ours), shrubs or trees with alternate or basal lvs. and solitary or clustered 

 many-fid. usually radiate heads, 0.5-1.5 cm. high: principal bracts of the involucre in 

 one series; receptacle flat, naked, often honeycombed: fr. 5-10-ribbed; pappus of 

 numerous white hair-like bristles. 1,200 species, in all parts of the world; 150 in 

 China; one of the largest of plant genera. (Latin: senex, old man; referring to the 

 abundant white pappus of some species.) 



Key to the Species 



Plant erect. 



Plant stout: heads clustered, about 2cm. across: lvs. lanceolate or 



spathulate, mostly entire 1 . S. ca?}ij)estns 



Plant slender: heads scattered, about 1 cm. across: lvs. ovate, serrate. . 2. S. oldhamianus 

 Plant vine-like 3. -S. scandevs 



1. Senecio campestris DC. ^J^ (Kou She Ts'ao; Dog's-tongue Herb) (Mak.F. 29). 

 Stout herb, to 8 dm.; fls. yellow, III-V. Eurasia; locally in An., Ki., Ku. Sandy 

 grassland. 



2. "Senecio oldhamianus Maxim. (St.P.B. 16: 219). Slender herb, to 5dm.; fls. 



yellow, V-VI. China; locally in An., Che., Ki., Ku. Moist cliffs. 



3. Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. Mvc^W- (Huang Hua Chih Ts'ao; Yellow-flower- 

 branch Herb) (B.M. 1019). Scandent perennial herb; fls. yellow, X; lvs. finely 

 pubescent. Southeastern Asia; locally in An., Ki., Ku. Woodland. 



35. Ligularia Cass. Ht^M (T'o Wu Shu) 



Perennial herbs with alternate lvs. which have petioles clasping the stem : heads 

 radiate, large; disk 1.2-2.5 cm. high: rays yellow: involucre tubular or campanulate, 

 of a single series of imbricated bracts: style brs. obtuse or round, not truncate: achenes 

 glabrous; pappus of long or short bristles, scabrous or barbellate. Nearly 100 species, 

 mostly in Asia; 25 or more in China. (Name refers to the strap-shaped or more or 

 less bilabiate flowers.) 



Key to the Species 



Lvs. palmatipartite 1 . L. japonica 



Lvs. dentate, but not deeply lobed or parted. 



Fig. involucres few, 12-20 mm. in diam., each with several linear- 

 lanceolate basal bracts 2. L. kaempferi 



Fig. involucres many (about 30), not over 10 mm. in diam., each with 



2 or 3 linear basal bracts 3. L. sibirica 



1. Ligularia japonica (Thunb.) Less. {Senecio japonica (Thunb.) Schultz-Bip.) gLWM 

 (Wang Chiang Nan; Looking-forward-to-the-south-of-the-river) (Mak.F. 26). Stout 

 herb, to 1.5m.; fls. orange-yellow, VII. Southeastern Asia; locally in An., Che., 

 Ki. Moist woodland. 



2. Ligularia kaempferi Sieb. & Zucc. (Senecio kaempferi (S. & Z.) DC.) (B.M. 1018). 

 Erect herb, to 8 dm.; fls. lemon-yellow, VIII-X. Southeastern Asia; locally in 

 An., Che., Ku. Grassland. 



3. Ligularia sibirica Cass. (Senecio ligularia Hook, f.) (Mak. F. 25; F.H.E. 1: 454). 

 Erect herb, to 1.5m.; fls. orange, yellow, VII-VIII. Asia; locally in An., Ki. 

 Moist woodland. 



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