Launaea sarmentosa
Launaea sarmentosa (Willd.) Kuntze
Launaea sarmentosa is a perennial herb in the Asteraceae family, native to coastal regions of Africa, Madagascar, the Seychelles, Mauritius, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Southeast Asia. It has been naturalized in Western Australia. The plant grows as a low rosette with a root system that includes a taproot and trailing lateral roots, and a woody caudex. It produces runners up to over 1 m long, with secondary rosettes and flowers at each node.
Description
Launaea sarmentosa is a prostrate perennial herb that forms a rosette. It has a taproot and trailing lateral roots, with a short woody caudex that becomes branched with age. The plant produces long, flagelliform runners with nodes that develop secondary rosettes and pedunculate capitula. Rosette leaves are spathulate, ranging from 1-14 cm in length, with variable margins. The capitula have 11-20 flowers, and the involucre is cylindrical before anthesis and becomes subclub-shaped. Outer involucral bracts are ovate to ovate-acute, with a distinct scarious margin. The species is widely distributed across tropical regions and is naturalized in Western Australia.
Distribution
West Bengal · Tamil Nadu · Réunion · Kenya · Madagascar · Hong Kong · Sri Lanka · Maldives · Mauritius · Kerala · Maharashtra · Jawa · Western Australia · Hainan · Guangdong · Aldabra · Thailand · Tanzania · Bangladesh · Vietnam · KwaZulu-Natal · Mozambique · Orissa · Karnataka · Andaman Is. · Myanmar · TW · Cape Provinces · China Southeast · India
Synonyms
Ammoseris sarmentosusMicrorhynchus dregeanusMicrorhynchus bellidifoliusAmmoseris bellidifoliaAmmoseris sarmentosa var. javanicaAmmoseris sarmentosa var. sarmentosaLaunaea sarmentosa var. sarmentosaAmmoseris sarmentosaMicrorhynchus sarmentosusLaunaea bellidifoliaLaunaea pinnatifidaLaunaea sarmentosaLaunaea sarmentosa var. javanicaChondrilla sarmentosaPrenanthes sarmentosaLactuca sarmentosa
