Ericameria laricifolia

Plants 30-100 cm . Stems erect to ascending, green when young, fastigiately branched, glabrous, gland-dotted, resinous. Leaf blades ascending, sometimes spreading when older, filiform to narrowly oblanceolate (adaxially sulcate to concave), 10-20 × 1-2 mm, midnerves not evident, apices acute, sometimes apiculate, faces glabrous, regularly gland-dotted (in circular, deep pits), resinous; axillary leaf fascicles sometimes present, shorter than subtending leaves. Heads in irregular cymiform arrays (to 7 cm wide). Peduncles 3-15 mm (bracts 3-20+, mostly leaflike, distal scalelike). Involucres turbinate, 3-5 × 3-5 mm. Phyllaries 12-20 in 3-4 series, tan, linear to lanceolate, 1-3.5 × 0.5-1 mm, unequal, mostly chartaceous, sometimes herbaceous-tipped, erect, midnerves raised, somewhat expanded apically, subapical resin ducts usually present, (margins scarious to narrowly membranous, glabrous or ciliate) apices erect, acute, sometimes apiculate, abaxial faces glabrous. Ray florets 3-6; laminae 4-5 × 1-2 mm. Disc florets 6-16; corollas 5-6 mm. Cypselae tan to brown, turbinate to narrowly oblanceolate, 3.5-4 mm (ribs ca. 5), villous; pappi off-white to brown, 3.5-5 mm. 2n = 18.

Flowering fall. Rocky, desert mountains on slopes, mesas, canyons, and rock walls; 1000-2000 m; Ariz., Calif., Nev., N.Mex., Tex., Utah; Mexico (Chihuahua).

FNA 2006, Benson and Darrow 1981, Kearney and Peebles 1969, Wiggins 1964

Common Name: turpentine bush Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Subshrub General: Compact, broom-like shrub, 30-100 cm tall; stems erect to ascending, resinous; branchlets striate below leaf bases. Leaves: Alternate, sessile, and densely crowded on younger branchlets; blades broadly linear and somewhat fleshy with acute apices, ascending when young and spreading when older, 1-2 cm long by 1-2 mm wide, midnerves not evident, surfaces conspicuously impressed-punctate-resinous. Flowers: Flower heads yellow, radiate, in irregular, much bracted cyme-like clusters on short peduncles 3-15 mm long; involucre (ring of bracts wrapped around the flower head) top-shaped, 3-5 mm high by 3-5 mm wide, spreading considerably in fruit, the bracts (phyllaries), lance-linear and acute-tipped, in 4-5 imbricated series (overlapping and staggered like tiles on a roof); ray flowers 3-6 or absent in part of heads, the laminae (ray petals) yellow, 4-5 mm long and 1-2 mm wide, barely exceeding disk corollas; disk flowers 9-16, the corollas yellow, 5-6 mm long. Fruits: Achenes 4 mm long, top-shaped to narrowly lance-shaped, tan to brown and covered with white appressed hairs; topped with a pappus of light brown bristles, about equaling disk corollas in length. Ecology: Found on rocky slopes, on mesas, in canyons, and along rock walls from 3,000-6,000 ft (914-1829 m); flowers August-November. Distribution: s CA, s NV, AZ, s NM, sw TX; south to n MEX. Notes: Distinguished by being a medium shrub to 1 m with a turpentine smell when crushed; the overlapping, resinous, gland-dotted, filiform-shaped leaves and dense showy clusters of heads of very few (3-6 or absent) thin, yellow rays and mostly yellow disk flowers with long exserted stigmas. Similar to E. linearifolia but that species has much larger flower heads, with involucres about 1 cm high, mature heads about 2 cm wide in fruit, and longer peduncles 2-7 cm long. Look for it in AZ mostly below the Mogollon Rim and near the Grand Canyon. Ethnobotany: Unknown, but other species in the genus have uses. Etymology: Eric- is ancient root for heath or broom, and amari means bitter; laricifolia means having leaves like larch (genus Larix). Synonyms: Haplopappus larcifolius Editor: SBuckley 2010, FSCoburn 2015, AHazelton 2016