Difference between revisions of "Liatris gracilis"

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Common name: Slender blazing star
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Common name: slender blazing star<ref name=weakley>Weakley, A.S. 2020. Flora of the Southeastern United States. Edition of 20 October 2020. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.</ref>
 
==Taxonomic notes==
 
==Taxonomic notes==
Synonyms: ''Laciniaria laxa'' Small; ''Laciniaria gracilis'' (Pursh) Kuntze
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Synonyms: ''Liatris gracilis'' Pursh var. ''gracilis''<ref name=weakley/>
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Varieties: ''Laciniaria laxa'' Small; ''Laciniaria gracilis'' (Pursh) Kuntze<ref name=weakley/>
  
 
==Description==  
 
==Description==  
 
<!-- Basic life history facts such as annual/perrenial, monoecious/dioecious, root morphology, seed type, etc. -->
 
<!-- Basic life history facts such as annual/perrenial, monoecious/dioecious, root morphology, seed type, etc. -->
 
A description of ''Liatris gracilis'' is provided in [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250067102 The Flora of North America].
 
A description of ''Liatris gracilis'' is provided in [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250067102 The Flora of North America].
''Liatris gracilis'' is a perennial herbaceous species.
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''Liatris gracilis'' is a perennial herbaceous species. Its stems are pubescent with leaves that are glabrous or pubescent beneath and remotely ciliate. The involucres are pedunculate, cylindric, 5-9 mm long, and 3-7 mm in diameter. The heads are 7-12 flowered with 1-3 cm long peduncles. The nutlets are 2.5-4 mm long with pappus that are 5-6.5 mm long.<ref name=weakley/>
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The root system of ''Liatris gracilis'' includes corms which store non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) important for both resprouting following fire and persisting during long periods of fire exclusion.<ref name="Diaz"> Diaz-Toribio, M.H. and F. E. Putz 2021. Underground carbohydrate stores and storage organs in fire-maintained longleaf pine savannas in Florida, USA. American Journal of Botany 108: 432-442.</ref>. Diaz-Toribio and Putz (2021) recorded this species to have an NSC concentration of 370.3 mg/g (ranking 9 out of 100 species studied) and water content of 43.8% (ranking 19 out of 100 species studied).<ref name="Diaz"/>
  
 
==Distribution==
 
==Distribution==
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This plant ranges from Southern Carolina, south to southern Florida, and west to Mississippi.<ref name=weakley/>
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==Ecology==
 
==Ecology==
 
===Habitat=== <!--Natural communities, human disturbed habitats, topography, hydrology, soils, light, fire regime requirements for removal of competition, etc.-->
 
===Habitat=== <!--Natural communities, human disturbed habitats, topography, hydrology, soils, light, fire regime requirements for removal of competition, etc.-->
''L. gracilis'' occurs in moist to dry loamy sand, sandy loam, or sandy clayey soils. <ref name=fsu> Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: [http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu]. Last accessed: June 2014.  Collectors:  E. S. Ford, R.K. Godfrey, Loran C. Anderson, John Morrill, E. L. Tyson, Kurt E. Blum, D. B. Ward, Gary R. Knight, C. Jackson, H. A. Davis, Samuel B. Jones, Paul L. Redfearn, Jr., R. Kral, Almut G. Jones, Victoria I. Sullivan, R L Lazor, Olga Lakela, J. P. Gillespie, James D. Ray, Jr., Donald G. Randolph, Sidney McDaniel, J. B. Nelson, B. Cooper, Wendy Caster, Kurt E. Blum, John D. Lazor, Wilson Baker, A. F. Clewell, Roy Komarek, E. V. Komarek, T. MacClendon, Boothes, and Chris VanDerpoel.  States and Counties:  Florida:  Alachua, Bay, Calhoun, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dade, Dixie, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hillsborough, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Nassau, Okaloosa, Orange, Pasco, Polk, Santa Rosa, St Johns, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington. Georgia:  Thomas. </ref> It can be found in longleaf pine-wiregrass flatwoods communities, mixed oak-pine woodlands, oak scrub, grasslands, sandhills, limestone outcroppings, and dry hammocks. <ref name=fsu/> However, it can also be found in disturbed areas including roadsides, clear-cuts, waste ground, power line corridors, and old fields. <ref name=fsu/> Associated species include ''Liatris elegans, L. chapmanii, L. spicata, L. tenuifolia, Agalinis, Trichostema, Dicerandra, Pinus palutris, Pinus clausa, Carphephorus pseudoliatris, Carya, Pinus elliottii, Carphephorus odoratissimus, C. paniculatus, Chrysopsis, Chrysopsis, Eupatorium, Solidago, Palafoxia, Aristida stricta, Myrica, Quercus virginiana, Serenoa repens, Pityopsis graminifolia var. graminifolia, Xyris, Andropogon,'' and ''Sporobolus floridanus''. <ref name=fsu/>
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''L. gracilis'' occurs in moist to dry loamy sand, sandy loam, or sandy clayey soils.<ref name=fsu> Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: [http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu]. Last accessed: June 2014.  Collectors:  E. S. Ford, R.K. Godfrey, Loran C. Anderson, John Morrill, E. L. Tyson, Kurt E. Blum, D. B. Ward, Gary R. Knight, C. Jackson, H. A. Davis, Samuel B. Jones, Paul L. Redfearn, Jr., R. Kral, Almut G. Jones, Victoria I. Sullivan, R L Lazor, Olga Lakela, J. P. Gillespie, James D. Ray, Jr., Donald G. Randolph, Sidney McDaniel, J. B. Nelson, B. Cooper, Wendy Caster, Kurt E. Blum, John D. Lazor, Wilson Baker, A. F. Clewell, Roy Komarek, E. V. Komarek, T. MacClendon, Boothes, and Chris VanDerpoel.  States and Counties:  Florida:  Alachua, Bay, Calhoun, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dade, Dixie, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hillsborough, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Nassau, Okaloosa, Orange, Pasco, Polk, Santa Rosa, St Johns, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington. Georgia:  Thomas. </ref> It can be found in longleaf pine-wiregrass flatwoods communities, mixed oak-pine woodlands, oak scrub, grasslands, sandhills, limestone outcroppings, and dry hammocks.<ref name=fsu/> However, it can also be found in disturbed areas including roadsides, clear-cuts, waste ground, power line corridors, and old fields.<ref name=fsu/> Associated species include ''Liatris elegans, L. chapmanii, L. spicata, L. tenuifolia, Agalinis, Trichostema, Dicerandra, Pinus palutris, Pinus clausa, Carphephorus pseudoliatris, Carya, Pinus elliottii, Carphephorus odoratissimus, C. paniculatus, Chrysopsis, Chrysopsis, Eupatorium, Solidago, Palafoxia, Aristida stricta, Myrica, Quercus virginiana, Serenoa repens, Pityopsis graminifolia var. graminifolia, Xyris, Andropogon,'' and ''Sporobolus floridanus''.<ref name=fsu/>
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''Liatris gracilis'' is frequent and abundant in the Clayhill Longleaf Woodlands community type as described in Carr et al. (2010).<ref>Carr, S.C., K.M. Robertson, and R.K. Peet. 2010. A vegetation classification of fire-dependent pinelands of Florida. Castanea 75:153-189.</ref>
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===Phenology=== <!--Timing off flowering, fruiting, seed dispersal, and environmental triggers.  Cite PanFlora website if appropriate: http://www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/ -->
 
===Phenology=== <!--Timing off flowering, fruiting, seed dispersal, and environmental triggers.  Cite PanFlora website if appropriate: http://www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/ -->
 
''L. gracilis'' has been observed flowering in January and July through November, while fruiting has been observed in September through November.<ref name=fsu/><ref>Nelson, G.  [http://www.gilnelson.com/ PanFlora]: Plant data for the eastern United States with emphasis on the Southeastern Coastal Plains, Florida, and the Florida Panhandle. www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/  Accessed: 12 DEC 2016</ref>
 
''L. gracilis'' has been observed flowering in January and July through November, while fruiting has been observed in September through November.<ref name=fsu/><ref>Nelson, G.  [http://www.gilnelson.com/ PanFlora]: Plant data for the eastern United States with emphasis on the Southeastern Coastal Plains, Florida, and the Florida Panhandle. www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/  Accessed: 12 DEC 2016</ref>
  
 
===Seed dispersal===
 
===Seed dispersal===
This species is thought to be dispersed by wind. <ref>Kirkman, L. Katherine. Unpublished database of seed dispersal mode of plants found in Coastal Plain longleaf pine-grasslands of the Jones Ecological Research Center, Georgia.</ref>   
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This species is thought to be dispersed by wind.<ref>Kirkman, L. Katherine. Unpublished database of seed dispersal mode of plants found in Coastal Plain longleaf pine-grasslands of the Jones Ecological Research Center, Georgia.</ref>   
 
<!--===Seed bank and germination===-->
 
<!--===Seed bank and germination===-->
  
 
===Fire ecology=== <!--Fire tolerance, fire dependence, adaptive fire responses-->
 
===Fire ecology=== <!--Fire tolerance, fire dependence, adaptive fire responses-->
This species occurs in habitat that is maintained by frequent or annual fire. <ref name=fsu/>
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''Liatris gracilis'' occurs in habitat that is maintained by frequent or annual fire,<ref name=fsu/> and has been known to persist through repeated annual burns.<ref>Robertson, K.M. Unpublished data collected from Pebble Hill Fire Plots, Pebble Hill Plantation, Thomasville, Georgia.</ref>
<!--===Pollination===-->  
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<!--===Use by animals===--> <!--Herbivory, granivory, insect hosting, etc.-->
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===Pollination===
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''L. gracilis'' is a nectar producing plant that is attractive to native pollinators such as bees and butterflies. Songbirds across the longleaf forest will eat the seeds of Slender Blazing Star.<ref>Denhof, Carol. 2014. Plant Toothache Grass Slender Blazing Star Liatris Gracilis Pursh. The Longleaf Leader – Denizens of the Longleaf Woodland. Vol. VII. Iss. 3. Page 13</ref>
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<!--===Herbivory and toxicology===-->
 
<!--===Diseases and parasites===-->
 
<!--===Diseases and parasites===-->
  
==Conservation and management==
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==Conservation, cultivation, and restoration==
  
==Cultivation and restoration==
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==Cultural use==
 
==Photo Gallery==
 
==Photo Gallery==
 
<gallery widths=180px>
 
<gallery widths=180px>

Latest revision as of 11:56, 12 June 2023

Liatris gracilis
Liatris gracilis Gil.jpg
Photo taken by Gil Nelson
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta - Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae ⁄ Compositae
Genus: Liatris
Species: L. gracilis
Binomial name
Liatris gracilis
Pursh
LIAT GRAC dist.jpg
Natural range of Liatris gracilis from USDA NRCS Plants Database.

Common name: slender blazing star[1]

Taxonomic notes

Synonyms: Liatris gracilis Pursh var. gracilis[1]

Varieties: Laciniaria laxa Small; Laciniaria gracilis (Pursh) Kuntze[1]

Description

A description of Liatris gracilis is provided in The Flora of North America. Liatris gracilis is a perennial herbaceous species. Its stems are pubescent with leaves that are glabrous or pubescent beneath and remotely ciliate. The involucres are pedunculate, cylindric, 5-9 mm long, and 3-7 mm in diameter. The heads are 7-12 flowered with 1-3 cm long peduncles. The nutlets are 2.5-4 mm long with pappus that are 5-6.5 mm long.[1]

The root system of Liatris gracilis includes corms which store non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) important for both resprouting following fire and persisting during long periods of fire exclusion.[2]. Diaz-Toribio and Putz (2021) recorded this species to have an NSC concentration of 370.3 mg/g (ranking 9 out of 100 species studied) and water content of 43.8% (ranking 19 out of 100 species studied).[2]

Distribution

This plant ranges from Southern Carolina, south to southern Florida, and west to Mississippi.[1]

Ecology

Habitat

L. gracilis occurs in moist to dry loamy sand, sandy loam, or sandy clayey soils.[3] It can be found in longleaf pine-wiregrass flatwoods communities, mixed oak-pine woodlands, oak scrub, grasslands, sandhills, limestone outcroppings, and dry hammocks.[3] However, it can also be found in disturbed areas including roadsides, clear-cuts, waste ground, power line corridors, and old fields.[3] Associated species include Liatris elegans, L. chapmanii, L. spicata, L. tenuifolia, Agalinis, Trichostema, Dicerandra, Pinus palutris, Pinus clausa, Carphephorus pseudoliatris, Carya, Pinus elliottii, Carphephorus odoratissimus, C. paniculatus, Chrysopsis, Chrysopsis, Eupatorium, Solidago, Palafoxia, Aristida stricta, Myrica, Quercus virginiana, Serenoa repens, Pityopsis graminifolia var. graminifolia, Xyris, Andropogon, and Sporobolus floridanus.[3]

Liatris gracilis is frequent and abundant in the Clayhill Longleaf Woodlands community type as described in Carr et al. (2010).[4]

Phenology

L. gracilis has been observed flowering in January and July through November, while fruiting has been observed in September through November.[3][5]

Seed dispersal

This species is thought to be dispersed by wind.[6]

Fire ecology

Liatris gracilis occurs in habitat that is maintained by frequent or annual fire,[3] and has been known to persist through repeated annual burns.[7]

Pollination

L. gracilis is a nectar producing plant that is attractive to native pollinators such as bees and butterflies. Songbirds across the longleaf forest will eat the seeds of Slender Blazing Star.[8]

Conservation, cultivation, and restoration

Cultural use

Photo Gallery

References and notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Weakley, A.S. 2020. Flora of the Southeastern United States. Edition of 20 October 2020. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Diaz-Toribio, M.H. and F. E. Putz 2021. Underground carbohydrate stores and storage organs in fire-maintained longleaf pine savannas in Florida, USA. American Journal of Botany 108: 432-442.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu. Last accessed: June 2014. Collectors: E. S. Ford, R.K. Godfrey, Loran C. Anderson, John Morrill, E. L. Tyson, Kurt E. Blum, D. B. Ward, Gary R. Knight, C. Jackson, H. A. Davis, Samuel B. Jones, Paul L. Redfearn, Jr., R. Kral, Almut G. Jones, Victoria I. Sullivan, R L Lazor, Olga Lakela, J. P. Gillespie, James D. Ray, Jr., Donald G. Randolph, Sidney McDaniel, J. B. Nelson, B. Cooper, Wendy Caster, Kurt E. Blum, John D. Lazor, Wilson Baker, A. F. Clewell, Roy Komarek, E. V. Komarek, T. MacClendon, Boothes, and Chris VanDerpoel. States and Counties: Florida: Alachua, Bay, Calhoun, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dade, Dixie, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hillsborough, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Nassau, Okaloosa, Orange, Pasco, Polk, Santa Rosa, St Johns, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington. Georgia: Thomas.
  4. Carr, S.C., K.M. Robertson, and R.K. Peet. 2010. A vegetation classification of fire-dependent pinelands of Florida. Castanea 75:153-189.
  5. Nelson, G. PanFlora: Plant data for the eastern United States with emphasis on the Southeastern Coastal Plains, Florida, and the Florida Panhandle. www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/ Accessed: 12 DEC 2016
  6. Kirkman, L. Katherine. Unpublished database of seed dispersal mode of plants found in Coastal Plain longleaf pine-grasslands of the Jones Ecological Research Center, Georgia.
  7. Robertson, K.M. Unpublished data collected from Pebble Hill Fire Plots, Pebble Hill Plantation, Thomasville, Georgia.
  8. Denhof, Carol. 2014. Plant Toothache Grass Slender Blazing Star Liatris Gracilis Pursh. The Longleaf Leader – Denizens of the Longleaf Woodland. Vol. VII. Iss. 3. Page 13