Flora of New Zealand Series

Type locality: Top of Ruahine Range. Type: K, Colenso.

Rhizome slender, branching; basal lvs rosulate at nodes, plants forming open patches. Lamina ± 10-20 × 10-20 mm., suborbicular to ovate-oblong to broad-elliptic, truncate to rather abruptly cuneate at base, thinly coriac.; strigulose-hairy to nearly glab.; margins rather distantly sparingly crenate-serrate to sinuate or subentire; teeth distinctly apiculate. Petioles (10)-20-30 mm. long, slender. Cauline lvs similar, several to few to 0. Scapes 6-10-15 cm. long, slender, glab. to rather densely hairy; bracts few to 0, ± 2-3 mm. long, linear. Capitula 5-8-(10) mm. diam. Phyll. linear, ± acute, ciliolate, us. with narrow scarious margins. Achenes c. 2.5 × 0.75 mm., subobliquely obovate, distinctly curved, almost turgid; margins thickened. Beak c. 0.75 mm. long, continuing curvature of margins.

DIST.: K., N., S., St. Open shrubland, light forest, grassland and open places from c. lat. 37° southwards in main islands.

FL. 11-1. FT. 12-4.

Similar forms occur in Auckland and Campbell Is, but material available is insufficient for exact determination. Hooker (loc. cit. 126) indicates 2 vars for the Ruahine Range: " Var. α; caule elongato, foliis majoribus elliptico-oblongis. Var. β; minor, caule abbreviato, foliis parvis grosse pauci dentatis."