Antennaria howellii

From Puget Prairie Plants
  • Scientific Name: Antennaria howellii
  • Family: Asteraceae
  • Common Names: Howell's pussytoes
  • Codon: ANTHOW

Photo by Rod Gilbert. Also featured on Main Page

Taxonomy

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Subkingdom: Viridiplantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Spermatophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Subclass: Asteranae
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Antennaria Gaertn.
Species: Antennaria howellii Greene

[1]

Plant Description

Perennial, dioceous herb with erect stems and spreading stolons, up to 4 dm tall.[2] Basal leaves entire, oblanceolate,[3] green and glabrous above, white wooly below.[2] Cauline leaves few, linear.[2] Pseudanthia discoid with imbricate phyllaries.[4] Male flowers with undivided style and sparse pappus; female flowers with bifid style and many capillary bristles.[4] Achenes are terete.[2]

Bloom Period

May to July[2]

Distribution

Both sides of the Cascades crest;[2] across Canada and the northern United States.[4]

Habitat

Prairies to open woodlands, roadsides, disturbed sites.[3]

First Nations

Use by the Bellacoola People (Bí’lxula) as an analgesic[5], and by the Ojibwe (Anishinaabeg) as an infusion to purge afterbirth and to heal from child birth[6].

Other uses

Could be grown in rock gardens for spring bloom.

Propagation

[Protocol from Native Plant Network]

Seed

Antennaria howellii, photo: Lisa Hintz

Seed sample from: 2009

Average Measurement: 1.1 x 0.3 x 0.2

Measurement Range: L: 0.9 - 1.5, W: 0.2 - 0.4, D: 0.1 - 0.3

Features

Shape: Slightly larger than Anaphalis margaritacea and has lighter, glossier, and more dimpled hilum.

Color: Brown.

Additional Structures: At opposite end of hilum is pappus of white hairs that attach in a ring around the end of the seed. Pappus is significantly longer that seed.

Surface: Seed is slightly grooved, hairy, and covered with white globules.

Could be confused with: Anaphalis margaritacea


Latitudinal Cross Section: elliptical Anthowelliilat.png

Longitudinal Cross Section: elliptical ARHI-long-crosssection.png


Basic Explanations and Assumptions:

The dimensions for the seeds are length x width x depth. The location of the hilum is used as the base of the seed, and the length is measured from hilum to the opposite apex. Where a style is present, the length is measured from the hilum to the bottom of the style. Width is measured at a right angle to the length at the widest part. Depth is measured at a right angle to the intersection of height and width lines.

Measurements included are the mean average for each measurement of ten separate seeds.

All measurements in millimeters unless otherwise noted.

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References

  1. Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved from https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=185118
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 WTU Herbarium, Burke Museum, & University of Washington. Retrieved from https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Antennaria%20howellii
  3. 3.0 3.1 Illinois Wildflowers. Retrieved from https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/fld_pussytoesx.htm
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Hitchcock, C. L., Cronquist, A., Giblin, D., & Legler, B. et al. (2018). Flora of the Pacific Northwest: an illustrated manual. Seattle: University of Washington Press. p. 537.
  5. Native American Ethnobotany Database. Retrieved from http://naeb.brit.org/uses/3606/
  6. Native American Ethnobotany Database. Retrieved from http://naeb.brit.org/uses/3607/