Saussurea DC.

Herbs, annual, biennial or perennial, glabrous or tomentose. Leaves radical and cauline, alternate, unarmed, entire, toothed, pinnatifid or pinnatisect. Heads homogamous, solitary, corymbose or panicled, sessile or peduncled. Involucre ovoid, oblong, globose or hemispheric; bracts many-seriate, erect, not spiny, tips usually rigid and sharp; inner ones narrower and longer than the outer. Receptacle flat or convex, usually densely bristly, rarely naked. Flowers usually bluish or purple, all bisexual and similar; tube slender; limb narrow, 5-fid. Filaments free, glabrous; anther bases sagittate; auricles connate; tails usually long, entire, ciliate or woolly. Style arms linear. Achenes oblong, 4 - 10-ribbed, glabrous, smooth or rugose, top truncate, cupular or crowned with thickened disc and persistent base of style. Pappus hairs 1 - 2-seriate or many seriate; outer usually of rigid scabrid bristles, rarely feathery or absent; inner feathery, base thickened and connate into a deciduous ring.

Temperate Asia, Australia, Europe and W. and N. America; ca 403 species, 61 in India.

Notes. J.D. Hooker (1881) placed the genus under the tribe Cynaroideae, subtribe Carduineae, and treated the species under two subgenera, viz., Eusaussurea and Eriocoryne. Eusaussurea has been further grouped into 6 sections. Lipschitz (1979) has treated the Indian species under 5 subgenera and each subgenus has been further grouped into different sections. In the present treatment the genus has been dealt as such, without any subdivisions.

Literature. HAJRA, P.K. (1988). Brahmakamal & its allies in India. Dehra Dun. LIPSCHITZ, S.J. (1979). Rod Saussurea DC. (Asteraceae). Leningrad.

KEY TO THE SPECIES

1a. Achenes shortly prickly in upper part; pappus hairs many-seriate

11. Saussurea ceratocarpa

b. Achenes smooth or rugose; pappus hairs 1-2-seriate

2

2a. Herbs usually densely woolly

3

b. Herbs usually not densely woolly

12

3a. Receptacle naked

4

b. Receptacle with bristles

5

4a. Leaves linear-lanceolate, acute at apex; pappus white

40. Saussurea nishiokae

b. Leaves broadly rounded at apex; pappus nut brown

19. Saussurea depsangensis

5a. Herbs, dwarf, densely tufted

6

b. Stem distinct, 10.5-30 cm high

8

6a. Leaves linear-spathulate, entire at margins

5. Saussurea aster

b. Leaves oblong-obovate or obovate-lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, toothed at margins

7

7a. Leaves oblong-obovate or obovate-lanceolate; pappus white or dull white

23. Saussurea glacialis

b. Leaves linear-lanceolate; pappus pale brown or dull blue

25. Saussurea gnaphalodes

8a. Heads solitary

27. Saussurea graminifolia

b. Heads in dense clusters

9

9a. Heads deeply embedded in woolly hairs

26. Saussurea gossypiphora

b. Heads exposed or partially exposed outside the woolly hairs

10

10a. Leaves linear-oblong, pinnatifid or rarely denticulate-sinuate

49. Saussurea simpsoniana

b. Leaves narrow, obovate, spathulate or rhomboid, subentire or dentate

11

11a. Leaves subentire, sometimes minutely lobulate at apex

58. Saussurea tridactyla

b. Leaves in upper half dentate, broadly obovate at apex

35. Saussurea medusa

12a. Heads enclosed in floral, boat shaped, papery bracts or bracteate by broad, obtuse, appressed leaves

13

b. Heads not enclosed in floral, boat shaped papery bracts

17

13a. Dwarf, generally 2-6 cm high herbs.

37. Saussurea nana

b. Stems always well developed, erect, 8-70 cm high

14

14a. Leaves linear, grass like, 0.2-0.3 cm broad; heads bracteate by broad, obtuse, appressed leaves

30. Saussurea hookeri

b. Leaves broad, not grass like; heads enclosed in boat shaped bracts

15

15a. Heads solitary, large, 2.5-5 cm (3-5 in S. uniflora var. conica)

59. Saussurea uniflora

b. Heads many, (rarely solitary), comparatively small, 1.2-2.5 cm in diam.

16

16a. Aoral bracts pale yellow; heads glabrous

42. Saussurea obvallata

b. Floral bracts pale-pinkish; heads villous

8. Saussurea bracteata

17a. Stems stout, 0.3 -3 .5 m high

18

b. Stems 2.5-30 cm high or dwarf, stemless

36

18a. Terminal lobes of leaves large, deltoid

18. Saussurea deltoidea

b. Terminal lobes of leaves not as above

19

19a. Heads sessile, in clusters

20

b. Heads panicled, solitary or in corymbs

21

20a. Herbs 1-2.5 m tall; leaves glabrate beneath

16. Saussurea costus

b. Herbs 0.6-0.9 m high; leaves woolly beneath

32. Saussurea laneana

21a. Heads in terminal panicles, lateral branches racemose

22

b. Heads solitary or in corymbs

23

22a. Leaves pinnatisect; lobes apiculate

36. Saussurea nagensis

b. Leaves sinuate dentate or lyrate pinnatifid

17. Saussurea crispa

23a. Heads in corymbs

24

b. Heads solitary and terminal

35

24a. Stems winged by decurrent leaf bases

25

b. Stems not winged by decurrent leaf bases

26

25a. Outer pappus bristles short, scab rid

10. Saussurea candolleana

b. Outer pappus bristles absent

12. Saussurea chenopodifolia

26a. Stems usually 2-3 m tall; involucral bracts glabrous, rarely cottony

27

b. Stem up to 1.5 m high

28

27a. Inflorescence not diffuse; capitula many

2. Saussurea albescens

b. Inflorescence diffuse; capitula few

20. Saussurea diffusa

28a. Outer pappus absent

29

b. Outer pappus present

33

29a. Achenes muricate, 5-angled

28. Saussurea heteromalla

b. Achenes smooth or somewhat tubercled

30

30a. Leaves entire

31

b. Leaves lyrate-pinnatifid

32

31a. Cauline leaves ca 15 cm long

22. Saussurea gilesii

b. Cauline leaves 1-5 cm long

34. Saussurea leptophylla

32a. Achenes 10-ribbed

13. Saussurea chitralica

b. Achenes 4-angled

52. Saussurea stracheyana

33a. Pappus bristles short, scabrid

31. Saussurea jacea

b. Pappus bristles all feathery

34

34a. Leaves linear-lanceolate, almost entire; corymbs lax

45. Saussurea pantlingiana

b. Leaves ovate-oblong or oblong, sharply toothed; corymbs dense

46. Saussurea piptathera

35a. Leaves lyrate or lyrate-pinnatifid; pappus single; achenes tubercled.

7. Saussurea auriculata

b. Leaves oblong or oblong-lanceolate; pappus double; achenes not tubercled

21. Saussurea fastuosa

36a. Dwarf, stemless or with scape like stem

37

b. Stems distinct, 2.5-30 cm high

53

37a. Anther tails short, entire

38

b. Anther tails woolly or laciniate or fimbriate

39

38a. Inflorescence usually 3-5 cm in diam.; heads usually many; pappus while

50. Saussurea stella

b. Inflorescence 1-2 cm in diam.; heads usually a few; pappus grey to light brown

57. Saussurea thomsonii

39a. Anther tails woolly or laciniate or fimbriate

40

b. Anther tails woolly

41