Erechtites is a genus of flowering plants in the daisy family known commonly as fireweeds or burnweeds. They are native to the Americas and Australia, but some species are widely distributed weeds.
Description Erechtites consists of annual or perennial herbs with large taproots and very often with a pungent odor. Leaves are usually ovate or lanceolate (sometimes pinnately lobed or pinnatifid). Flower heads may sometimes contain as many as 100 yellow or white (rarely pink) disc florets but no ray florets.
Taxonomy and species Some species in this genus are treated as members of Senecio by some authors, and several other species are considered variants of Erechtites hieraciifolius, so there may be as few as 5 distinct species in this genus. In particular, not all authors agree on whether to include a dozen or so species native to Australia and New Zealand in Erechtites.Erechtites Hieracifolia. Fireweed., Drugs and Medicines of North America, 1884-1887 by John Uri Lloyd and Curtis G. Lloyd. Online edition by Henriette Kress, 2002-2009Jepson Manual Treatment
Species
27 species are recognised by Plants of the World Online
Erechtites apargiifolius - Australia Erechtites atkinsoniae - Australia Erechtites bathurstianus - Australia Erechtites bukaensis - Solomon Islands Erechtites diversifolius - New Zealand Erechtites glabrescens - Australia Erechtites glomeratus - Australia, New Zealand Erechtites glossanthus - Australia Erechtites goyazensis - South America Erechtites gunnii - Australia Erechtites hieraciifolius - North America, South America, West Indies; introduced in Europe and Asia Erechtites hispidulus - Australia Erechtites ignobilis - South America Erechtites kermadecensis - Kermadec Islands Erechtites laceratus - Australia Erechtites leptanthus - Chile Erechtites minimus - Australia, New Zealand Erechtites missionum - South America Erechtites petiolatus - South America Erechtites picridioides - Australia Erechtites quadridentatus - Australia, Java Erechtites runcinatus - Mexico Erechtites scaberulus - New Zealand Erechtites sonchoides - Australia, New Zealand Erechtites tenuiflorus - Australia Erechtites valerianifolius - Mexico, South America, Central America Erechtites wairauensis - New Zealand
Alternatively, a more limited genus circumscription restricts the genus to New World species and only recognises six species in two sections:
Erechtites sect. Erechtites Erechtites hieracifolius Erechtites missionis Erechtites valerianifolius Erechtites petiolatus Erechtites sect. Goyazenses Belcher Erechtites goyazensis Erechtites ignobilis
The genus name Erechtites is considered masculine by some botanists and feminine by others. Hence some species names may end in "-us" or "-a," for example, Erechtites valerianifolius versus E. valerianifolia. International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Art. 62.4) specifies that generic names ending in "-ites" are to be treated as masculine, hence the "-us" ending in such cases is to be preferred over the "-a" ending.International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Melbourne Code) article 62.4
References
External links USDA Plants Profile