玉龙蟹甲草 yu long xie jia cao

Cacalia rockiana Handel-Mazzetti, Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 13: 634. 1937; C. lidjiangensis Handel-Mazzetti var. acerina H. Koyama; Koyamacalia rockiana (Handel-Mazzetti) H. Robinson & Brettell.

Rhizomes procumbent, with numerous fibrous roots. Stem solitary, erect or slightly curved below, often purple, striate, 35-50 cm tall, shortly pubescent or arachnoid in upper part. Leaves usually 5, crowded at middle of stem, paniculate synflorescence branched above. Petiole narrowly winged, 1.5-2 cm; leaf blade adaxially green, broadly triangular, 6-9 × 4-6 cm, base truncate or cuneate, middle 3-lobed, central lobe shallowly 3-lobed, lateral lobes shallowly 2-lobed; lobes to 2.5 cm wide, abaxially densely gray-white arachnoid-lanate, adaxially sparsely or densely furfuraceous-hispidulous, palmately veined, margin deeply undulate-toothed, teeth mucronulate, apex acuminate. Uppermost leaves narrowly lanceolate, 3-fid upward into bracts; bracts purple tinged, linear, 1-1.2 cm, acute or acuminate. Capitula mostly at apex of stem, arranged in lax racemes; peduncles 2-3 mm, densely arachnoid, pendulous. Involucres cylindric, 8-11 × 2-3 mm; phyllaries 4 or 5, pale green, linear or linear-lanceolate, 1.5-2 mm wide, margin ciliate, narrowly scarious, ± purple, apex obtuse or slightly acute. Florets 4 or 5; corolla yellow, 1-1.1 cm; tube ca. 1/2 as long as limb, slender; limb cylindric-campanulate; lobes excurved, linear-lanceolate. Anthers exserted from corolla, basally caudate. Style branches truncate. Achenes cylindric, ca. 3 mm, glabrous, ribbed. Pappus white, shorter than corolla. Fl. Aug, fr. Oct.

● Forest margins on slopes; ca. 2400 m. Yunnan (Lijiang, Weixi).