Growth Form:Forb/herb; plants upright (erect) stems few, reddish, slender; with a period of reduced activity between seasons, this plant is able to survive vegetatively from season to season; stems are rough to the touch (scabrid) with long erect rigid hairs or bristles (hispid).
Leaves: Green, bright green; leaf blades generally ovate; the edges or margins are coarsely toothed to near smooth (entire); lower leaves arranged oppositely along the stems, upper leaves are alternate; as with the stems, the leaves are rough to the touch (scabrid), as they are covered with very small, coarse, stiff or rigid hairs (hirtellous).
Flower Color: Yellow; showy golden-yellow; flowering heads singles (solitary); flowering heads on long leafless stems; heads with both ray and diskflorets; bracts (phyllaries) are broadly linear (oblong) as shown in the photo above; fruit is a dark brown cypsela which looks similar to a flat sunflower seed.
Flowering Season: May or June to August and September
Elevation: 3,500 to 5,500 feet (1,067-1,676 m) more or less.
Habitat Preferences: Rocky hillsides and slopes, limestone soils.
Recorded Range: Rothrock’s Crownbeard is rare in the United States where its distribution is limited to south central and south eastern Arizona and in the southwest corner of New Mexico. Rothrock’s Crownbeard is also native to northern and central Mexico in Coahuila, Durango and Zacatecas.
Genus Information: In North America there are 18 species and 18 accepted taxa overall for Verbesina. Worldwide, The Plant List includes 303 accepted species names and a further 62 scientific names of infraspecific rank for Verbesina.
In the Southwestern United States: Arizona has 3 species of Verbesina, California has 2 species, Nevada has 1 species, New Mexico has 5 species, Texas has 10 species, Utah has 1 species. Data approximate, subject to revision.
Comments: Rothrock’s Crownbeard is a rare sub-tropical species in the United States where its entire distribution is limited to southern Arizona and southwest New Mexico. Rothrock’s Crownbeard employs a survival strategy known as perennating, in which a part or parts of a plant rest in a period of quietness or inactivity and cease growing under adverse conditions, drought, cold or excessive heat, with the ability to resume new growth when favorable conditions return.
Rothrock’s Crownbeard, Verbesina rothrockii has attractive daisy-like flowers, the flowers and their seeds may be visited by hummingbirds and/or small mammals including rodents and granivorous birds in search of nectar or food.
Beneficial Value to Butterflies, Honey Bees and Insects
Rothrock’s Crownbeard, Verbesina rothrockii has attractive daisy-like flowers, the flowers and their plants may be visited by butterflies, moths, flies, honeybees, Native Bees and other insects in search of food and nectar.
Etymology:
The genus “Verbesina” (Verbesi'na:) from the resemblance of the leaves to those of the the genus Verbena.
