whiplash hawkweed
(Pilosella flagellaris)
ORIGIN: Native to Europe. Introduced to North America by 1875 as a garden ornamental.
DESCRIPTION: An upright perennial typically growing 10-24 in (25-60 cm) tall from a fibrous root system. Plants produce short rhizomes as well as stolons that extend 4-12 in (10-30 cm) and form the next generation of plants. Stems are largely unbranched until the tips, which end in 5-30 capitula. Leaves (up to 5 in or 13 cm long) typically occur only in a basal rosette, though 1 or 2 smaller leaves may occur on the plant stem. Stems and leaves are covered with stiff hairs that can be simple, glandular, and/or star-shaped. The entire plant contains a milky latex. Capitula are ½-1 in (1-2½ cm) in diameter and contain reddish-orange florets (all ray). Seedhead bracts are covered in glandular hairs. Seeds (achenes) are topped by tufts of pappus, resembling dandelion seeds.
HABITAT: Prefers full sun or partial shade and soils that are well-drained and coarse-textured. Dense infestations often occur in moist meadows, pastures, hayfields, roadsides, gravel pits, forested areas, tree plantations, and riparian areas.
ECOLOGY: Reproduces by seed, stolons, and short rhizomes. Plants germinate in spring and flower from mid- to late summer. Seeds are transported by wind, water, or adhering to clothing or fur, and are often moved in contaminated soil associated with transplanting new plants into gardens and flower beds. Seeds remain viable in soil for up to 7 years. Stolons elongate throughout summer, forming daughter rosettes at their tips. Once the daughter plants root, the stolons die, and the new plant becomes independent. After flowering, the supporting rosette dies. New plants sprout each year from rhizomes.
CITATIONS:
Winston, R.L., C.B. Randall, De Clerck-Floate, R., McClay, A., Andreas, J. and M. Schwarzländer. 2016. Field Guide for the Biological Control of Weeds in the Northwest. USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team, Morgantown, West Virginia. FHTET-2014-08. Retrieved from https://bugwoodcloud.org/resource/pdf/Field_Guides_Series/Weeds_of_the_Northwest.pdf
DESCRIPTION: An upright perennial typically growing 10-24 in (25-60 cm) tall from a fibrous root system. Plants produce short rhizomes as well as stolons that extend 4-12 in (10-30 cm) and form the next generation of plants. Stems are largely unbranched until the tips, which end in 5-30 capitula. Leaves (up to 5 in or 13 cm long) typically occur only in a basal rosette, though 1 or 2 smaller leaves may occur on the plant stem. Stems and leaves are covered with stiff hairs that can be simple, glandular, and/or star-shaped. The entire plant contains a milky latex. Capitula are ½-1 in (1-2½ cm) in diameter and contain reddish-orange florets (all ray). Seedhead bracts are covered in glandular hairs. Seeds (achenes) are topped by tufts of pappus, resembling dandelion seeds.
HABITAT: Prefers full sun or partial shade and soils that are well-drained and coarse-textured. Dense infestations often occur in moist meadows, pastures, hayfields, roadsides, gravel pits, forested areas, tree plantations, and riparian areas.
ECOLOGY: Reproduces by seed, stolons, and short rhizomes. Plants germinate in spring and flower from mid- to late summer. Seeds are transported by wind, water, or adhering to clothing or fur, and are often moved in contaminated soil associated with transplanting new plants into gardens and flower beds. Seeds remain viable in soil for up to 7 years. Stolons elongate throughout summer, forming daughter rosettes at their tips. Once the daughter plants root, the stolons die, and the new plant becomes independent. After flowering, the supporting rosette dies. New plants sprout each year from rhizomes.
CITATIONS:
Winston, R.L., C.B. Randall, De Clerck-Floate, R., McClay, A., Andreas, J. and M. Schwarzländer. 2016. Field Guide for the Biological Control of Weeds in the Northwest. USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team, Morgantown, West Virginia. FHTET-2014-08. Retrieved from https://bugwoodcloud.org/resource/pdf/Field_Guides_Series/Weeds_of_the_Northwest.pdf
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State Lists - This map identifies those states that have this species on their invasive species list or law.
Taxonomic Rank
| Domain: Eukarya |
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Magnoliopsida |
| Superorder: Asteranae |
| Order: Asterales |
| Family: Asteraceae |
| Subfamily: Cichorioideae |
| Tribe: Cichorieae |
| Genus: Pilosella |
| Species Complex: yellow-flowered hawkweeds (Pilosella species complex) |
| Pilosella flagellaris |