甘肃蟹甲草 gan su xie jia cao

Rhizomes short and stout, 10-15 mm in diam., with numerous fibrous roots. Stem solitary, erect, 60-80(-100) cm, striate, sparsely puberulent or subglabrous, long naked in lower part. Leaves long petiolate, lower leaves fallen by anthesis, median stem leaves papery; petiole 5-8 cm, basally expanded into an ovate or rounded amplexicaul auricle; auricle 1.5-2.5 cm wide, entire or laxly toothed, sparsely puberulent; blade abaxially gray-green, adaxially green, triangular-hastate, 9-13 × 9-14 cm, abaxially puberulent on veins, adaxially sparsely adpressed puberulent, basally 5- or 6-veined, lateral veins upward divaricate, branched, veins convex abaxially, concave adaxially, base hastate-cordate, apex acute or acuminate; central lobes large, lateral lobes triangular, upper ones long, lower ones smaller, margin irregularly undulate-toothed, teeth mucronulate. Upper leaves similar, like median stem leaves but smaller, shortly petiolate; uppermost leaves triangular-hastate to lanceolate, with broad amplexicaul auricle or sessile. Capitula numerous, apically or in upper axils racemose-paniculate; rachis and peduncles with capitate stipitate glandular hairs; peduncles 1-2 mm, with 1 or 2 linear bractlets. Involucres cylindric, 6-7 × ca. 2 mm; phyllaries 5, purple-red, linear or linear-lanceolate, 0.5-1 mm wide, outside sparsely glandular or subglabrous, margin narrowly scarious, apically rather acute or obtuse. Florets 5 or 6; corolla yellow, 6-7 mm, with ca. 3 mm tube and broadly tubular limb; lobes lanceolate. Anthers exserted from corolla, 3-4 mm, basally caudate. Style branches excurved, truncate, papillose. Achenes cylindric, 3-4 mm, glabrous, ribbed. Pappus white, 6-7 mm. Fl. Jul-Aug, fr. Sep-Oct.

● Forest understories on slopes, thickets, shaded places by canals; 1300-2500 m. Gansu, Shaanxi.