Lasthenia leptalea

(A. Gray) Ornduff

Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot. 40: 63. 1966.

Common names: Salinas Valley goldfields
Endemic
Basionym: Burrielia leptalea A. Gray Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 6: 546. 1865
Synonyms: Baeria leptalea (A. Gray) A. Gray
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 21. Treatment on page 340. Mentioned on page 337, 338.

Annuals, to 15 cm. Stems erect (peduncles sometimes sinuous), branched distally, glabrous proximally, villous distally. Leaves linear, 3–20 × 0.5–1 mm, (± fleshy) margins entire, faces sparsely hairy. Involucres obconic to campanulate, 4–6 mm. Phyllaries (± persistent) usually 4–6 (in 1 series), elliptic to ovate, glabrous but for hairy apices. Receptacles subulate, papillate, glabrous. Ray florets 6–9; corolla laminae broadly elliptic, 2.5–5 mm. Anther appendages subulate. Cypselae gray, narrowly clavate, to 2 mm, sparsely hairy; pappi usually of 1–4 translucent, white to yellowish, subulate, aristate scales (sometimes 0 in some florets within heads). 2n = 16.


Phenology: Flowering Feb–May.
Habitat: Open areas of oak woodlands
Elevation: 0–700 m

Discussion

Lasthenia leptalea grows in southern Monterey and northern San Luis Obispo counties. Originally assigned by R. Ornduff (1966b) to sect. Burrielia, L. leptalea is morphologically similar to L. gracilis, from which it can be distinguished by its subulate anther appendages and phyllaries that are hairy only at their tips.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.