''Grindelia hirsutula'' is a North American species of flowering plant in the family

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 ...

known by the common names hairy gumplant and hairy gumweed.

Distribution

''Grindelia hirsutula'' is native to North America, widespread across Canada and in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. The species is highly variable, and many local populations have been named as varieties or as distinct species. All these taxa do, however, intergrade with one another.

Description

''Grindelia hirsutula'' is an erect perennial herb or subshrub sometimes as much as tall but usually much shorter. The plant is usually green but the stems are often red or purplish-brown and the leaves can be somewhat yellowish to reddish. The plant can produce numerous

flower heads A pseudanthium (; : pseudanthia) is an inflorescence that resembles a flower. The word is sometimes used for other structures that are neither a true flower nor a true inflorescence. Examples of pseudanthia include flower heads, composite flowers ...

in branching arrays at the top of the plant. Each head is wide with hemispheric cups of greenish phyllaries around the base, the bracts claw-like and bent away from the flowers. The center of the head is filled with many small yellow disc florets surround by numerous golden ray florets. The head produces a thick white

exudate An exudate is a fluid released by an organism through pores or a wound, a process known as exuding or exudation. ''Exudate'' is derived from ''exude'' 'to ooze' from Latin language, Latin 'to (ooze out) sweat' (' 'out' and ' 'to sweat'). Medi ...

, especially in new flower heads.Flora of North America, ''Grindelia hirsutula'' Hooker & Arnott, Bot. 1833.
/ref>

Varieties

*''Grindelia hirsutula'' var. ''maritima'' — San Francisco Gum Plant, San Francisco gumplant, coastal gumweed;

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to coastal

in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

.USDA: ''Grindelia hirsutula'' var. ''maritima''
/ref>

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile for ''Grindelia hirsutula'' (hairy gumweed)CalFlora Database: ''Grindelia hirsutula'' (gumweed, hairy gumweed)Jepson Manual Treatment of ''Grindelia hirsutula''University of California, Calphoto Photos gallery— ''Grindelia hirsutula''
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q12059153 hirsutula Flora of California Flora of Canada Flora of Oregon Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of the Central Valley (California) Natural history of the San Francisco Bay Area Plants described in 1833 Flora without expected TNC conservation status