铜川大戟 tong chuan da ji

Herbs, erect, up to 35 cm tall. Root fibrous, brown, 5-10 cm × 3-4 mm. Stem single, ca. 4 mm thick, unbranched. Leaves alternate; stipules absent; petiole absent; leaf blade linear-oblanceolate, 9-12 cm × 4-8 mm, abaxially light gray when dry; adaxially green, base attenuate, margin entire, apex acuminate; midrib prominent on both surfaces, lateral veins inconspicuous. Primary involucral leaves 3 or 4, long elliptic, 1-2 × 0.3-0.5 cm, base subtruncate, apex acuminate, primary rays 3 or 4, 1-2 cm; cyathophylls 2, ovate or triangular-ovate, 4-6 × 4-5 mm, base subtruncate or subemarginate, apex acuminate. Cyathium sessile; involucre cuplike, ca. 3 × 2.5 mm, pilose outside, light yellow, lobes triangular-rounded, white pilose at margin and inside; glands 4, subinfundibular, concave at middle, adaxially lower, abaxially higher, apex 2-horned. Bracteoles linear. Male flowers many. Female flower: ovary exserted from cup, densely micropunctate, glabrous; styles connate below middle; style arms 2-lobed. Fruit and seeds not seen. Fl. Oct.

● Sunny slopes; ca. 2400 m. Shaanxi (Tongchuan).