''Anaphalis margaritacea'', commonly known as the western pearly everlasting or pearly everlasting, is an

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

n and North American species of flowering

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

in the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

Description

''A. margaritacea'' grows erect up to about tall, with narrow, alternate leaves up to . The undersides of the leaves are densely covered in tiny hairs. The stems are dry and brittle. The whitish to yellowish flower grows to about across as part of a

corymb Corymb is a botanical term for an inflorescence with the flowers growing in such a fashion that the outermost are borne on longer pedicels than the inner, bringing all flowers up to a common level. A corymb has a flattish top with a superficial ...

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

, the most conspicuous part of which is the numerous pearly white bracts that surround the

disc floret The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

s. It blooms between June and September. The plant is dioecious, meaning the pollen-producing (male) and seed-producing (female) flowers are borne on separate plants.

Taxonomy

;Varieties and subspecies *''Anaphalis margaritacea'' var. ''cinnamomea'' (DC.) Herder ex Maxim. *''Anaphalis margaritacea'' subsp. ''japonica'' (Maxim.) Kitam. *''Anaphalis margaritacea'' var. ''margaritacea'' *''Anaphalis margaritacea'' var. ''yedoensis'' (Franch. & Sav.) Ohwi

Etymology

The species' common name 'pearly everlasting' comes from the pearly white bracts.

Distribution and habitat

It is widespread across most of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, as well as northwestern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Asian populations are found in China, the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...

, Japan,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, northern

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

, and the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

. The species is reportedly naturalized in Europe though not native there. It prefers dry, sunny climates, but is hardy to temperatures well below freezing.

Ecology

The leaves are host to the caterpillars of the

American painted lady The American painted lady or American lady (''Vanessa virginiensis'')painted lady ''Vanessa cardui'' is the most widespread of all butterfly species. It is commonly called the painted lady, or formerly in North America the cosmopolitan. Description File:Vanessa cardui MHNT CUT 2013 3 14 Pontfaverger-Moronvilliers Dos. ...

butterfly (''Vanessa cardui'').

Uses

The leaves and young plants are edible when cooked.

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q2365610 margaritacea Flora of North America Flora of Asia Dioecious plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus