ASTERACEAE  

Annual or perennial herbs or shrublets. Leaves alternate, opposite, or in basal rosette, sometimes tufted, mostly entire, rarely toothed, often linear to lanceolate, pubescent or rarely glabrous. Capitula radiate, rarely discoid, mostly solitary, terminal, pedunculate. Involucre hemispherical to campanulate; bracts in 3 or 4 rows, imbricate, unequal or strictly in 2 rows, equal. Receptacle flat, epaleate. Rayflorets female, fertile or rarely sterile, in 1 row, strap-shaped; corolla blue, mauve, pink or white, rarely yellow; 0 in 1 species. Staminodes sometimes present. Discflorets bisexual, fertile, rarely all inner ones functionally male, tubular, slightly dilated above, 5-lobed, yellow. Anthers ecalcarate and ecaudate; apical appendage triangular. Style branches narrowly oblong, apex with triangular appendage, with conspicuous pollen-sweeping hairs. Cypselas compressed, obovate with thickened margins, mostly hairy, bright brown or black. Pappus in 1 row, of persistent or caducous scabrid or barbellate bristles, rarely 0 in ray florets. x = 9 (5, 6, 8) (polyploidy).

Shrubs or shrublets, seldom perennial or annual herbs. Leaves alternate, sessile, lax or closely set, sometimes appearing rosulate or fascicled, entire, serrate-dentate or pinnatifid. Capitula radiate or discoid, lateral or pseudoterminal on unbranched peduncles. Involucre ecalyculate, hemispherical, campanulate, cyathiform or urceolate; bracts in 1 or +/- 2 rows, connate to various degrees, rarely free. Receptacle flat or convex, honeycombed or rarely smooth, epaleate. Rayflorets rarely 0, female, fertile; tube cylindrical; lamina yellow, orange-coloured or red to coppery on lower surface. Staminodes occasionally present. Discflorets bisexual, fertile or rarely functionally male; corolla yellow, tubular to campanulate, (3-)5-lobed. Stamens 5; anthers linear, ecalcarate and ecaudate to subacute at base; with flat, apical appendage; endothecial tissue radial. Style terete or linear, bifid or sometimes simple; style branches linear, truncate, penicillate at apex. Cypselas ellipsoid, glabrous or pubescent, ribbed or smooth or sometimes tuberculate or muricate or papillate. Pappus of few to many caducous bristles or 0; bristles flexuous, barbellate. x = 10 (polyploidy, B-chromosomes).

Annual or rarely short-lived, perennial herbs. Leaves alternate, shortly petiolate, ovate-lanceolate to linear, entire or serrate. Capitula discoid; several- to many-flowered, in much-branched corymbs. Involucre campanulate or subhemispherical; bracts herbaceous, in 3 to many rows, imbricate, acute or obtuse. Receptacle flat, epaleate. Corolla mauve or purple; tube cylindric below, shallowly campanulate above; lobes 5, lanceolate, longer than campanulate part of tube. Anthers obtuse at base; with short, ovate, membranous apical appendage. Style branches filiform, subulate; pollen-sweeping hairs relatively long, exserted. Cypselas oblong-obconical, usually strongly 2-6-ribbed, glandular or rarely sparsely pilose between ribs and with thickened apical rim. Pappus 0. x = 10 (8-1 report) (aneuploids, polyploidy).

Many-stemmed, sparsely to much-branched erect to spreading, sometimes spinescent, shrubs, silky-greyish, villous or occasionally glabrous, aromatic. Leaves ericoid, mostly opposite but sometimes alternate, often fascicled, entire or pinnatisect with 1-7 linear lobes. Capitula radiate or disciform, small, sessile to pedunculate, solitary, racemose, umbellate racemose, or in spikes. Involucre subglobose; bracts in single row of 4-6 bracts, often with broad membranous margin, pubescent to glabrous. Receptacle paleate; paleae linear or lanceolate, those of marginal flowers totally or partially connate or totally free from each other, hard and thick or transparent membranous, woolly. Marginalflorets 2 or 3, female, fertile; with or without strap-shaped lamina, corolla yellow, white or reddish, 2-4-toothed or -lobed lamina. Style terete with 2 linear, acute branches. Cypselas oblong-linear to narrowly obovate, slightly flattened, sometimes slightly angular, lanate or pilose. Pappus 0. Discflorets functionally male, corolla tubular, slightly widened, trumpet-shaped to infundibuliform, 5-lobed. Anthers ecalcarate and ecaudate; with lanceolate, apical appendage; endothecial tissue polarised. Style cylindrical, unbranched, apex globose with sweeping hairs, rarely 2-lobed. x = 9 (polyploidy).

Small shrubs, woolly. Leaves alternate, obovate, entire or apically 3-5-dentate, spine-tipped, fleshy. Capitula radiate, solitary, sessile, terminal, many-flowered. Involucre campanulate; bracts in several rows, chartaceous, glabrous, spine-tipped. Receptacle areolate, epaleate. Rayflorets female, fertile; corolla yellow; tube with oblong-elliptic, 3-toothed lamina shorter than tube; staminodes present. Discflorets bisexual; corolla yellow, tube widening above, deeply 5-lobed, with linear lobes. Anthers calcarate and caudate; with linear, apical appendage. Style slender, with long style branches, with short 2- or 3-celled hairs along branches and on shaft. Cypselas oblong-obovoid, densely sericeous. Pappus of stout, scabrid-barbellate bristles.