Brachyscome Cass.
Annual or perennial herbs, rarely subshrubs. Lvs alternate, basal or cauline, simple, entire to pinnatifid. Capitula solitary or numerous. Involucral bracts in 2-3 rows, imbricate, herbaceous with membranous margins. Receptacle slightly convex to hemispheric; scales 0. Outer florets ♀, ligulate, in 1 row; ligules white, to pink, blue or purple. Inner florets ⚥, tubular, few to numerous. Achenes dimorphic or all similar, terete or compressed, mostly obovoid or oblong, hairy, glandular or glabrous, sometimes with ribs or wings; pappus usually of a ring of small to large free or united simple bristles, sometimes 0.
Key
c. 66 spp., mostly Australia, also New Guinea and N.Z. Native spp. 5, naturalised 1.
Davis, G. L., Proc. Linn. Soc. New S. Wales 73 : 142-248 (1948) and 74 : 97-106, revised the Australian and N.Z. spp. respectively. N.Z. plants of the B. sinclairii complex in particular need closer examination; the treatment provided here differs from that of Allan (1961) and Davis (op. cit.) but is only provisional.
