Senecio integerrimus var. exaltatus Nutt. (Nutt.) Cronquist
western groundsel (Columbia ragwort)
Asteraceae (Aster family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Photograph

© Ryan Batten     (Photo ID #23942)


Map

E-Flora BC Static Map

Distribution of Senecio integerrimus var. exaltatus
Click here to view the full interactive map and legend

Species Information

General:
Perennial herb from a fibrous-rooted, short, erect woody stem-base; stems erect, solitary, branched above, sparsely to densely woolly-hairy, 20-70 cm tall.
Leaves:
Basal leaves thick, somewhat succulent, narrowly oblanceolate to elliptic or nearly round, stalked, 6-25 cm long including the stalk, 1-6 cm wide, entire or sometimes iregularly toothed, hairy when young becoming less so with age; stem leaves similar, progressively reduced upwards, becoming unstalked.
Flowers:
Heads with ray and disk flowers, several to numerous in a compact inflorescence; involucres 5-10 mm tall; involucral bracts lanceolate, hairless to moderately long-hairy, usually conspicuously black-tipped; bracteoles few, black-tipped; ray flowers yellow, rarely white or creamy; disk flowers yellow.
Fruits:
Achenes oblong, ribbed, glabrous or coarse-hairy; pappus of white hairlike bristles.
Notes:
Two poorly-defined varieties occur in BC. The var. ochroleucus has not been collected in BC since 1897.

1. Ray flowers white.............. var. ochroleucus (A. Gray) Cronq.

1. Ray flowers yellow................... var. exaltatus (Nutt.) Cronq.

SourceThe Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Illustration

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Senecio integerrimus var. exaltatus

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information
Value / Class

Avg

Min

Max

Elevation (metres)
1120 634 1536
Slope Gradient (%)
29 20 40

Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]

103 36 237
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric]
2 2 3
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
C
# of field plots
 species was recorded in:
4
Modal BEC Zone Class
IDF

All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in

ICH(1), IDF(2), PP(1)

Habitat and Range

Moist to dry grasslands, shrublands, forest openings and meadows in the steppe to lower subalpine zones; var. integerrimus common in S BC in and E of the Coast-Cascade Mountains, var. ochroleucus rare in SC and SE BC; E to SK and MN and S to CA.

SourceThe Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Synonyms

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Senecio columbianus Greene
Senecio exaltatus Nutt.
Senecio hookeri Torr. & A. Gray
Senecio integerrimus var. vaseyi (Greenm.) Cronq.
Senecio lugens var. exaltatus (Nutt.) Gray
Senecio vaseyi Greenm.