匙叶风毛菊 shi ye feng mao ju

Herbs ca. 2 cm tall, perennial, stemless. Caudex stout, few branched. Rosette leaves petiolate; petiole 1-1.5 cm; leaf blade spatulate to narrowly obovate-oblong, 2.5-4 × 0.3-0.6 cm, abaxially grayish green and densely tomentose, adaxially green, glandular hairy, and sparsely arachnoid, base attenuate, margin entire, apex acute. Capitulum solitary, in center of leaf rosette, sessile. Involucre narrowly campanulate, 0.8-1.2 cm in diam. Phyllaries in 3 or 4 rows, margin and distally purplish black, sparsely arachnoid, apex acuminate; outer phyllaries narrowly triangular-ovate, 5-8 × 2-3 mm; middle phyllaries narrowly ovate-elliptic, 8-12 × 1-2 mm; inner phyllaries linear, 12-14 × ca. 1 mm. Receptacle not seen. Corolla purple, 1.5-1.6 cm, tube 7-8 mm, limb 7-8 mm, lobes ca. 5 mm. Achene ca. 1.5 mm, transversely rugose. Pappus pale brown; outer bristles 2-3 mm, scabrid; inner bristles ca. 1 cm. Fl. and fr. Aug-Sep.

● Moraines, alpine meadows; ca. 4000 m. S Xizang (Yadong) [?India (Sikkim)].

Saussurea cochleariifolia may occur in India (Sikkim) (see Grierson & Springate, Fl. Bhutan 2(3): 1441. 2001).