''Baccharis brachyphylla'' is a
North American species of
shrub 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 ...
, known by the common name shortleaf baccharis or false willow.
It is native to the
southwestern United States (southern
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, southern
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
,
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
, southern
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
, and western
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
) and northern
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 ...
(
Baja California
Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...
,
Chihuahua,
Sonora).
It grows in desert habitats such as
arroyos and
canyons
A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency to cu ...
.
/ref>
This is a shrub producing erect, branching green stems up to a meter tall. The leaves are linear or thinly lance-shaped and less than long. The 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 ...
is a wide array of flower heads. A dioecious species, the male and female plants produce different flower types which are similar in appearance. The flowers and foliage are glandular. Female flowers yield fruits which are ribbed achenes, each with a fuzzy body long and a pappus about long.[Flora of North America, Shortleaf baccharis or false willow, ''Baccharis brachyphylla'' A. Gray, Smithsonian Contr. Knowl. 5(6): 83. 1853.](_blank)
/ref>
References
External links
Jepson Manual Treatment for ''Baccharis brachyphylla''
brachyphylla
Natural history of the Colorado Desert
Natural history of the Mojave Desert
Plants described in 1853
North American desert flora
Flora of the Southwestern United States
Flora of the South-Central United States
Flora of Northwestern Mexico
Flora of Northeastern Mexico
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Astereae-stub