COMPOSITAE COMPOSITE FAMILY 
GUM PLANT. TARWEED 
Grindelia squarrosa (Pursh) Dunal 
The Gum Plant or Tarweed grows on dry banks and prairies 
from Illinois to Minnesota and Manitoba, south to Texas and 
Mexico. It is only occasionally found east of Illinois, and even 
in this state is quite rare and local. 
The involucre and upper portions 
of the stem are exceptionally sticky, 
giving the plant its common name. 
The stem is considerably branched, 
smooth except for the stickiness and 
usually 1-2 feet high. Leaves are 
alternate, oblong to spatulate, blunt 
tipped and more or less clasping at 
the base. They are rather rigid and 
the sharp teeth are inclined to be 
almost spiny. 
The Gum Plant blooms from June 
to September. The large sticky heads 
contain both ray and disk flowers, 
which are yellow, the variety with 
ray flowers lacking not having been 
reported in Illinois. The disk flowers 
are perfect and the rays, which vary 
in length up to 1 inch, are pistillate. 
The bracts of the hemispherical in- 
volucre are linear-lanceolate, ar- 
ranged in several series, and their 
green awl-shaped tips are strongly 
recurved, which is what the specific 
name means. The receptacle is nearly 
flat and not chaffy. Both kinds of 
flowers produce the smooth, short 
and thick akene fruits, which in the 
outer flowers are usually thicker. The pappus is composed 
of 2 or 3 awns. 
Their gardens, banked with roses and with lilies— 
Those sweet aristocrats of all the flowers— 
Where Springtime mints her gold in daffodillies, 
And Autumn coins her marigolds in showers, 
And all the hours are toilless as the lilies. 
Old Homes—MADISON CAWEIN 
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