''Inula'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of about 80

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

to Europe, Asia and Africa. They may be

annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook **Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), a ...

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of ...

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

s or

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or undershrub is either a small shrub (e.g. prostrate shrubs) or a perennial that is largely herbaceous but slightly woody at the base (e.g. garden pink and florist's chrysanthemum). The term is often interch ...

s that vary greatly in size, from small species a few centimeters tall to enormous perennials over tall. They carry yellow daisy-like

composite Composite or compositing may refer to: Materials * Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances ** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts ** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic material ...

flowerheads often with narrow ray-florets. Some common characteristics include pappus with bristles, flat

capitulum capitulum (plural capitula) may refer to: *the Latin word for chapter ** an index or list of chapters at the head of a gospel manuscript ** a short reading in the Liturgy of the Hours *** derived from which, it is the Latin for the assembly known ...

, and lack of

chaff Chaff (; ) is dry, scale-like plant material such as the protective seed casings of cereal grains, the scale-like parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. Chaff cannot be digested by humans, but it may be fed to livestock, ploughed into soil ...

. Several species are popular flowers for the garden, with cultivation going back to antiquity. The smaller species are used in rock gardens and the more common larger ones, which tend to have very coarse foliage, in borders.

Etymology

The genus name ''Inula'' is of uncertain origin, and was already in use by the Romans. The Latin phrase ''inula campana'' (field inula) gave rise to the English whose scientific name is ''

Inula helenium Elecampane (''Inula helenium''), pronounced and also called horse-heal or elfdock, is a widespread plant species in the sunflower family Asteraceae. It is native to Eurasia from Spain to Xinjiang province in western China, and naturalized in pa ...

''. The plant's specific name, ''helenium'', derives from

Helen of Troy Helen (), also known as Helen of Troy, or Helen of Sparta, and in Latin as Helena, was a figure in Greek mythology said to have been the most beautiful woman in the world. She was believed to have been the daughter of Zeus and Leda (mythology), ...

; elecampane is said to have sprung up from where her tears fell.

Species

The following species are recognised in the genus ''Inula'':

Select species formerly in ''Inula''

* ''Inula auriculata'' Boiss. & Balansa => '' Pentanema auriculatum'' (Boiss. & Balansa) D.Gut.Larr. ''et al.'' * ''Inula britannica'' L. => '' Pentanema britannica'' (L.) D.Gut.Larr.''et al.'' – British yellowhead * ''Inula conyzae'' (Griess.) Meikle => '' Pentanema squarrosum'' (L.) D.Gut.Larr.''et al.'' – ploughman's-spikenard * ''Inula crithmoides'' L. => '' Limbarda crithmoides'' (L.) Dumort. – golden samphire * ''Inula dysenterica'' L. => ''

Pulicaria dysenterica ''Pulicaria dysenterica'', the common fleabane, or, in North America, meadow false fleabane, is a species of fleabane in the family Asteraceae. It is native to Europe and western Asia where it grows in a variety of habitats ranging from semi-ar ...

'' (L.) Bernh. * ''Inula graminifolia'' Michx. => '' Pityopsis graminifolia'' (Michx.) Nutt. * ''Inula graveolens'' (L.) Desf. => ''

Dittrichia graveolens ''Dittrichia graveolens'', commonly known as stinkwort or stinking fleabane, is a plant species in the Asteraceae, sunflower family, native to southern Europe, North Africa, and western Asia as far east as Pakistan. It has become naturalized in ...

'' (L.) Greuter – stinkwort, stinkweed * ''Inula hirta'' L. => ''

Pentanema hirtum ''Pentanema hirtum'' is a species of perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the family Asteraceae. The specific Latin name ''hirtum'' refers to the type of hairiness (bristly and rough) of the plant. Description ''Pentanema hirtum'' reaches a h ...

'' (L.) D.Gut.Larr. ''et al.'' * ''Inula indica'' L. => ''

Pentanema indicum ''Pentanema'' is a genus of Asian and African plants in the tribe Inuleae within the family Asteraceae. Species The following species are recognised in the genus ''Pentanema'': Formerly included In 2018, the ''Vicoa'' genus was re-erected due ...

'' (L.) Y.Ling * ''Inula mariana'' L. => ''

Chrysopsis mariana ''Chrysopsis mariana'', known as the Maryland golden-aster, is a North American species of plants in the family Asteraceae. The Maryland golden-aster ranges from Rhode Island and New York, west to Kentucky and southern Ohio, and south as far as F ...

'' (L.) Elliott * ''Inula orientalis'' Lam. => '' Pentanema orientale'' (Lam.) D.Gut.Larr.''et al.'' * ''Inula primulifolia'' Lam. => '' Conyza primulifolia'' (Lam.) Cuatrec. & Lourteig * ''Inula salicina'' L. => '' Pentanema salicinum'' (L.) D.Gut.Larr.''et al.'' – Irish fleabane, willowleaf yellowhead * ''Inula spiraeifolia'' L. => '' Pentanema spiraeifolium'' (L.) D.Gut.Larr.''et al.'' * ''Inula subaxillaris'' Lam. => ''

Heterotheca subaxillaris ''Heterotheca subaxillaris'', known by the common name camphorweed, is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread across much of the United States (from California to Massachusetts) as well as Mexico an ...

'' (Lam.) Britton & Rusby * ''Inula viscosa'' => ''

Dittrichia viscosa ''Dittrichia viscosa'', also known as false yellowhead, woody fleabane, sticky fleabane and yellow fleabane, is a flowering plant in the daisy family. ''Dittrichia viscosa'' is a highly branching perennial common throughout the Mediterranean Ba ...

'' – false yellowhead, sticky fleabane, woody fleabane

Ecology

''Inula'' species are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...

species including case-bearers of the genus ''

Coleophora ''Coleophora'' is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions. Many authors have t ...

'', such as '' C. conyzae'' (recorded on ''I. conyzae''), '' C. follicularis'', '' C. inulae'', and '' C. troglodytella''.

Gallery

File:Inula hookeri (2018) 02.jpg, Inula hookeri. Budding flower bud. File:Inula hookeri. locatie, Tuinen Mien Ruys.JPG, Inula hookeri. Inflorescence.

References

External links

*
Flora Europaea: ''Inula''Flora of China: list of Chinese ''Inula'' species
* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q338207 Asteraceae genera