Dicoma macrocephala DC.

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Dicoma macrocephala

Photo: Tony Benn
Serowe

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Synonyms:
Common names:
Frequency:
Status: Native
Description:
A low spreading perennial herb to c. 10 cm tall, with annual stems growing from the crown of a woody taproot. Leaves elliptic, mostly 2.5–6.5 cm long, mucronate at the apex, narrowing to a short winged petiole below, margins thickened with more or less obscured callose teeth; upper surface thinly whitish hairy later becoming hairless, lower surface densely greyish-white felted. Capitula 1-several, subsessile, solitary and terminal on branches or short shoots or axillary, subtended by several leaves. Involucres mostly 23–33 mm long, spreading to c. 25 mm wide. Phyllaries numerous; the outer from c. 6 mm long, sharply ciliolate on the margins; the inner to c. 32 mm long, lorate-lanceolate, sharp-tipped. Outer florets rudimentary; pappus of numerous barbellate setae to c. 25 mm long. Inner floret corollas whitish-mauve, narrowly tubular, c. 6 mm long; achenes c. 4 mm long, narrowly turbinate and somewhat compressed, with c. 10 pronounced more or less wing-like ribs, uniformly densely setose-strigose between the ribs; pappus 2-seriate, outer of 15–20 slender subplumose-ciliolate setae to c. 12 mm long, inner of c. 10 more robust very narrowly scale-like setae to c. 15 mm long and broadly membranous undulate-winged towards the base, subplumose ciliolate above.
Notes:
Derivation of specific name: macrocephala: with large heads
Habitat: Open or lightly wooded grassland, on Kalahari Sand or poor stony soils.
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution: Southern Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Northern Cape South Africa.
Botswana distribution: SE
Growth form(s):
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Content last updated: Saturday 14 March 2020
Literature:

Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 24.

Pope, G.V. (1992). Compositae Flora Zambesiaca 6(1) Pages 42 - 43.

Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 32.

Van Wyk, B. & Malan, S. (1988). Field Guide to the Wild Flowers of the Witwatersrand and Pretoria Region Struik, Cape Town Pages 272 - 273. (Includes a picture).

Wild, H. (1972). The Compositae of the Flora Zambesiaca area. 3. Mutisieae. Kirkia 8(2) Pages 187 - 188.

Other sources of information about Dicoma macrocephala:

Our websites:

Flora of Mozambique: Dicoma macrocephala
Flora of Zimbabwe: Dicoma macrocephala

External websites:

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


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Botswana: Species information: Dicoma macrocephala.
https://www.botswanaflora.com/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=161920, retrieved 28 March 2024

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