Flora of New Zealand Series

Short-lived perennial or biennial, taprooted herb with rather sprawling, branched habit. Stems to c. 50 cm long, very slender, strigillose, reddish. Basal rosette lacking. Lower cauline lvs glabrate or somewhat strigillose, sometimes glabrous above; petiole to c. 3 cm long, slender; lamina 1.5-4 × 0.5-1.6 cm, lanceolate to elliptic, somewhat pinnatifid towards base, otherwise denticulate; base cuneate to attenuate; apex acute; uppermost lvs becoming ± apetiolate, smaller, and often subentire. Fls few, distant, diurnal; pedicels filiform, strigillose. Floral tube 3-6 mm long, densely strigillose. Buds ovoid, erect. Sepals 7-9 mm long, with reddish hairs as on floral tube; apices erect in bud. Petals c. 6-8 mm long, broad-obovate, rose. Style exserted by c. 5-9 mm, glabrous, = or slightly < filaments. Capsule c. 8 mm long (probably all immature), obovoid or broad-clavate, ribbed, densely strigillose, shortly tapering to base. Seeds c. 0.75 mm long, oblong to ellipsoid, not angled.

N.: Parnell (Auckland), Tararu (N. of Thames).

S. U.S.A, Mexico, C. and S. America 1958

A casual garden escape, waste places.

FL Nov-Apr.