Baileya pauciradiata (Laxflower)

Baileya pauciradiata Harv. & A. Gray ex A. Gray

Laxflower, Colorado desert marigold, Colorodo Desert Marigold

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Asterales	Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
Family	Asteraceae	The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers
Genus	Baileya	After Jacob Whitman Bailey (1811-1857), early American microscopist and pioneer of this means of investigation. He graduated from West Point Military Academy and from 1834 until his death he taught and eventually became full professor of chemistry, minerology and geology at that institute. He made numerous improvements in the design of the microscope and amassed large collections of slides of microscopic objects. He was elected President of the American Association of the Advancement of Science in 1856 and was the author of more than 50 scientific papers. One of his sons became a chemist and geologist, and another, William Whitman, became a botanist
Species	pauciradiata	From the Latin for “few-rayed” [Compare pleniradiata]

About plant names...

Laxflower is native to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States, at elevations of less than 3000' (914 m). It prefers sandy habitats and full sun.

Plants: 4-20" (10-50 cm), often branched. Stems are silvery (tomentose) due to the presence of many tiny hairs.

Leaves: Basal leaves wither quickly. Leaves higher up are 1½-6" (4-14 cm) long, linear-oblong to lanceolate or oblanceolate, sometimes deeply lobed.

Flowers: Composite flowers are yellow. Each stem contains 2-3 flowers. Each flower contains 4-8 obovate rays, each with 3 shallow lobes, yellow or pale yellow. There are 8-20 disc flowers, also yellow, and hairy. Flowers appear from March to May.

Fruits: Club-shaped, ⅛-³/₁₆" (4-5 mm), evenly ribbed.

Medical: Contains odoratin and paucin, which may prove effective against certain cancers.

Online References:

Baileya pauciradiata on CalPhotos (photos)

Baileya pauciradiata on www.calflora.net

Baileya pauciradiata on www.sciencedirect.com (paywalled)

Baileya pauciradiata on eFloras

Baileya pauciradiata from the Jepson Manual

Baileya pauciradiata on calscape.org

4/29/2018 · Red Spring Calico Basin, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
≈ 7 × 4½" (18 × 12 cm)

Baileya pauciradiata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/29/2018 · Red Spring Calico Basin, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

4/29/2018 · Red Spring Calico Basin, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
≈ 7 × 4" (16 × 11 cm)

4/29/2018 · Red Spring Calico Basin, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
≈ 14 × 21" (34 × 52 cm)

4/29/2018 · Red Spring Calico Basin, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
≈ 6 × 4" (14 × 10.0 cm)

Range:

About this map...