瓜拉坡蟹甲草 gua la po xie jia cao

Senecio koualapensis Franchet, J. Bot. (Morot) 8: 356. 1894; Cacalia koualapensis (Franchet) Handel-Mazzetti; S. leclerei H. Léveillé.

Rhizomes short, stout, with tomentose fibrous roots. Stem solitary, erect, striate, 30-80 cm tall, simple, brown multicellular villous in lower part. Median and lower stem leaves 3 or 4; petiole not winged, 3-5 cm, densely brown villous; blade abaxially pale green, sometimes turning purple, adaxially green, broadly ovate-triangular or broadly ovate, rarely rhombic or cordate, 5-15(-18) × 6-15 cm, papery, abaxially yellow-brown villous especially on veins, adaxially adpressed hispidulous, base truncate or subrounded, rarely cordate, margin usually triangularly toothed, teeth mucronulate, sometimes inconspicuous, apex obtuse or shortly acute. Upper leaves shortly petiolate or subsessile, gradually smaller or very small, bracteal-leaflike, lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, entire. Capitula numerous, terminal or in upper leaf axils, arranged in simple or rarely branched narrow panicles; peduncles ca. 2 mm, on one side, spreading, pendulous later, with 1 or 2 linear bractlets. Involucres cylindric, 6-8 × 1.5-2 mm; phyllaries 5, linear-oblong, 1-1.5 mm wide, glabrous, margin narrowly scarious, apically obtuse or slightly acute. Florets 5; corolla yellow, ca. 8 mm, with slender, ca. 3 mm tube and tubular limb; lobes lanceolate. Anthers exserted from corolla, basally caudate. Style branches excurved, truncate, papillose. Achenes cylindric, 4-5 mm, glabrous, ribbed. Pappus white, 6-7 mm. Fl. Aug-Sep, fr. Oct.

● Understories of mixed forests on slopes; 2800-3200 m. Yunnan.