Pleurophyllum criniferum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Pleurophyllum criniferum |
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| Plates XXIV-XXV from the Flora Antarctica | |
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Astereae
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| Genus: |
Pleurophyllum
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| Species: |
P. criniferum
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| Binomial name | |
| Pleurophyllum criniferum |
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Pleurophyllum criniferum is a special kind of flowering plant that belongs to the daisy family. It is found only on the New Zealand subantarctic islands. This means it grows naturally nowhere else in the world!
What Does It Look Like?
Pleurophyllum criniferum is a very large plant. It is a perennial herb, which means it lives for many years. It does not have a woody stem like a tree. This plant can grow very tall, up to 2 meters (about 6.5 feet)!
Its leaves are also huge. They can be a meter (over 3 feet) long! The leaves come in different shapes. They are usually somewhat oval or spear-shaped. The underside of the leaves feels soft. This is because it is covered in silky white hairs.
The flowers of this plant are quite unique. They grow in groups of 15 to 30 "heads" on long stalks. These heads are actually made of many tiny flowers. The outer flowers (called ray-florets) are small and hard to see. The inner flowers (called disk-florets) are a dark purple color.
This plant blooms from December to February. It then produces fruits from January to May.
Where Does It Grow?
This plant is endemic to New Zealand's subantarctic islands. You can find it on the Antipodes, Auckland, and Campbell Islands. It is a very noticeable part of the "megaherb" community there.
A megaherb is a very large herb. It grows from the coast up into the island ranges. It prefers peaty ground in herbfields. Peaty ground is soil made of partly decayed plant material. Herbfields are areas covered mostly by herbs.
