ASTERACEAE  

Annual herbs. Leaves alternate or sometimes opposite, straight, adaxially concave, tomentose, glandular-hairy; margin entire. Capitula radiate, solitary, sessile or pedunculate. Involucral bracts with lanceolate laminas. Receptacle flat to convex, paleate; paleae lanceolate with two lateral teeth. Ray florets female, yellow with purple bands dorsally, in one row, fewer than disc florets; cypselas and pappus as in disc florets. Disc florets bisexual, yellow, often with robust multicellular trichomes. Anthers ecalcarate, with short tails; endothecial tissue polarised; apical appendage acute. Style branches truncate with obtuse sweeping hairs apically. Cypselas narrowly elliptic with three vascular bundles, densely hairy with elongated, apically coiled twin hairs. Pappus a crown of +/- free scales.

Shrubs, or shrublets, rarely annuals. Leaves alternate, rarely opposite, sessile, needle-shaped to lanceolate, very rarely obovate, glandular. Capitula radiate, mainly solitary and sessile, rarely pedunculate or corymbose, few- to many-flowered. Involucre ellipsoid, ovoid or campanulate; bracts in +/- 5 rows, ovate to linear, sometimes bilobed, sometimes with ovate, terminal appendage. Receptacle flat or somewhat conical, with linear to broad paleae as long as corolla. Ray florets female, yellow, marginal; corolla tube with minutely 3-toothed lamina shorter or longer than tube; ovary linear or oblong, sometimes ribbed. Style slender, with linear, obtuse branches. Pappus a cup- or crown-like structure or of separate, membranous paleae. Disc florets bisexual, fertile or sterile; corolla tube widening above, becoming campanulate; lobes short, ovate. Anthers sagittate or tailed at base; ovary linear, sometimes with 2 ciliate ribs, glabrous to pilose. Style linear, sometimes swollen at base, branches linear, truncate, rarely rounded. x = 7 (5).

Shrublets or shrubs, often viscid, rarely spiny, rarely with decumbent branches rooting at nodes. Leaves mostly opposite or alternate, sometimes fascicled, entire or ciliate-serrulate, sometimes coriaceous or succulent, woolly-tomentose, papillose or glabrous, rarely warted. Capitula discoid, solitary or corymbose, 1-many-flowered. Involucre campanulate to cylindric or ovoid; bracts in 4-10 rows, inner progressively longer, with membranous, glabrous or ciliate margins, sometimes acuminate or spine-tipped. Receptacle convex to concave, often honeycombed, margins setose or lacerate. Florets bisexual. Corolla yellow, rarely purple or greenish; tube usually widening above, often chartaceous; lobes 5, triangular, oblong-linear to obovate. Anthers linear, obtuse at base; usually with lanceolate, membranous, apical appendage. Style terete; branches usually lanceolate, flattened, with short or long appendages, apex hairy. Cypselas obovoid or turbinate or +/- compressed, sometimes narrowed into short apical beak, glabrous to villous. Pappus usually in 2 rows, of scabrid, barbellate or subpilose bristles, often connate at base, mostly straw-coloured, rarely purple.

Annual, biennial or perennial herbs. Leaves alternate, sessile, lanceolate, linear-lanceolate or oblanceolate, sometimes decurrent, margins entire, flat or undulate, both surfaces woolly, or glandular above, woolly below (hair type B). Capitula disciform, in small clusters corymbosely or cymosely arranged. Involucralbracts in 3 or 4 rows, inner +/- equalling or slightly exceeding flowers, white to yellow, often buff or cream; stereome usually divided, rarely undivided ( P. oligandrum). Receptacle smooth or honeycombed, epaleate. Florets few to many; female florets more than bisexual florets, corolla yellow, filiform or narrowly tubular; bisexual florets tubular, scarcely broadened above, yellow, 5-lobed; all florets glandular-hairy on backs of lobes. Anthers ecalcarate, caudate, tails slightly longer or shorter than filament collar; with small, obtuse or subacute apical appendage; endothecial tissue polarised. Style branches truncate and penicillate, with obtuse sweeping hairs. Cypselas oblong, either glabrous or with duplex myxogenic hairs; epidermal cells tabular, often imbricate. Pappus bristles scabrid, apical cells sometimes inflated, bases cohering by patent cilia. x = 7 (1 report).

Shrubs, shrublets or perennial herbs. Leaves alternate, petiolate or sessile, sometimes leaf bases decurrent, sometimes auriculate, ovate, obovate, elliptic to linear or lanceolate, margin entire to dentate, tomentose or tomentose only beneath (hair type B). Capitula radiate or disciform, 1-3 together, sessile or shortly pedunculate on short, axillary branchlets. Involucre campanulate; bracts in 3-6 rows, lanceolate to linear, ciliate towards apex, woolly on back; stereome undivided. Receptacle slightly convex, honeycombed, epaleate. Marginalflorets female, in 1 row, white, blue, purple or green; corolla sometimes shortly strap-shaped or filiform, with 3-toothed, oblong or oblong-elliptic lamina longer than tube; staminodes often present. Style 2-branched. Discflorets bisexual, fertile; corolla yellow, white or purple, rarely green; tube widened above, glabrous, with 5 linear or lanceolate lobes. Anthers ecalcarate or calcarate, caudate; apical appendage flat; endothecial tissue polarised. Style bifid; style branches obtuse, dorsally with short papillose, obtuse sweeping hairs not reaching furcation; stigmatic surface basally separated but apically converging. Cypselas brown, cylindrical, 9-11-ribbed, glandular-hairy and sparsely hairy with elongated twin hairs. Pappus persistent, of subbarbellate or subplumose bristles in 2 or 3 rows.