Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 14, 2026

Cnicothamnus

Cnicothamnus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Its species are small trees which can reach 5m in height, bearing alternate ovate and dentate leaves with a whitish pubescence. The inflorescences, borne at branch tips, are bell-shaped capitula of a bright orange colour, and usually appear during local winter. Their fruit bears a rough plume.SpeciesCnicothamnus azafran, native to Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay Cnicothamnus lorentzii, native to Argentina and Bolivia

Last revised
Jun 14, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
219 w
Citations
7
Source
Cnicothamnus
Cnicothamnus lorentzii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Spermatophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Gochnatioideae
Tribe: Gochnatieae
Genus: Cnicothamnus
Griseb.
Type species
Cnicothamnus lorentzii
Synonyms1
  • Lefrovia Franch.

Cnicothamnus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae.234 Its species are small trees which can reach 5m in height, bearing alternate ovate and dentate leaves with a whitish pubescence. The inflorescences, borne at branch tips, are bell-shaped capitula of a bright orange colour, and usually appear during local winter. Their fruit (which can be described as a cypsela) bears a rough plume.5

Species1
References

References

  1. Flann, C (ed) 2009+ Global Compositae Checklist
  2. Grisebach, August Heinrich Rudolf. 1874. Abhandlungen der Königlichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen 19: 196-197 in Latin
  3. Tropicos, Cnicothamnus Griseb.
  4. Tellería, M. C., et al. (2013). Pollen morphology and its taxonomic significance in the tribe Gochnatieae (Compositae, Gochnatioideae). Plant Systematics and Evolution 299(5), 935-48.
  5. Killeen, T. J.; García E., E. & Beck, S. G. (1993). Guía de Arboles de Bolivia. Herbario Nacional de Bolivia + Missouri Botanical Garden, La Paz. p.232.
  6. Cnicothamnus. Preliminary Checklist of the Compositae of Bolivia. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Version 2, March 2011.

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