''Corethrogyne'' is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Its only species is ''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'' (

syn. The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnae ...

''Lessingia filaginifolia''), known by the common names common sandaster and California aster.

Description

''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'' is a robust perennial herb or subshrub producing a simple to multibranched stem approaching in maximum length or height. The densely woolly leaves are several centimeters long and toothed or lobed low on the stem and smaller farther up the stem. The inflorescence is a single flower head or array of several heads at the tips of stem branches. The head is lined with narrow, pointed, purple-tipped phyllaries which curl back as the head matures. Inside are many purple, lavender, pink, or white ray florets and a center packed with up to 120 tubular yellow disc florets. The fruit is an

achene An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not ope ...

with a pappus of reddish bristles on top. Lessingia filaginifolia var filaginifolia 2

Taxonomy

The genus ''Corethrogyne'' was erected by Augustin Pyramus de Candolle in 1836 for the species he described as ''Corethrogyne californica''. De Candolle explained the genus name as derived from Greek , , 'broom', 'brush' and , , 'woman', 'female', referring to the appendages on the style branches. In 1833,

William Jackson Hooker Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botanic garden. At Kew he ...

and

George A. Walker Arnott George Arnott Walker Arnott of Arlary (6 February 1799 – 17 April 1868) was a Scottish botanist. Early life George Arnott Walker Arnott was born in Edinburgh in 1799, the son of David Walker Arnott of Arlary. He attended Milnathort Parish ...

had described ''Aster filaginifolius''. This species is now regarded as

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

with ''Corethrogyne californica'', in which case the oldest epithet is ''filaginifolius'', so the correct name in ''Corethrogyne'' is ''Corethrogyne filaginifolia''. Species placed in ''Corethrogyne'' were later grouped together under the name ''Lessingia filaginifolia'', and then moved back to genus ''Corethrogyne'' as a single species with many synonyms. ,

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepted only one species in the genus ''Corethrogyne'', ''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'', making the genus monotypic.

Distribution and habitat

''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'' is native to western North America from the southwestern corner of Oregon through California to Baja California, where it is a common member of many plant communities, including chaparral and woodlands, forests, scrub, grasslands, and the

serpentine soil Serpentine soil is an uncommon soil type produced by weathered ultramafic rock such as peridotite and its metamorphic derivatives such as serpentinite. More precisely, serpentine soil contains minerals of the serpentine subgroup, especially anti ...

s flora.

References

External links

''Corethrogyne filaginifolia''
at Calflora
''Corethrogyne filaginifolia''
at Jepson eFlora
United States Department of Agriculture Plants Profile for ''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'' (common sandaster)''Corethrogyne filaginifolia'' — Calphotos Photo gallery, University of California
Astereae Monotypic Asteraceae genera Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Astereae-stub