Family:

Asteraceae

Habitat:

Ruderal grassland, garrigue, along roadsides, near the coast and in wasteland

Growth habit:

woody semi-shrub at the base

Plant size:

up to 1.5 m tall

Flower colour:

yellow

Flowering time

July - November

Leaf characteristics:

Heads in the leaf axils at the stem ends, diameter up to 15 mm, tubular flowers orange, ray florets yellow, up to 15 mm long, leaves somewhat wrinkled, lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, alternate

Flower characteristics:

lower leaves pointed, linear to oblong, distantly toothed, upper leaves somewhat stem-embracing, stalkless

Fruits:

aachenes suddenly contracted at the end, hairy, about 2 mm long, cylindrical, hairy, pappus hairs fused close to the base

Special features:

This versatile medicinal plant is a semi-shrub and is glandular and sticky in all parts, which is why it is sometimes used by farmers as a fly trap. Rubbing the leaves gives off a strong, spicy, unpleasant aroma. The pappus of the sticky elecampane consists of bristles that grow together at the base. In addition to the Mediterranean region, it is also found in the Canary Islands. A special feature is that the leaves of the plant adopt a compass position, i.e. the narrow side of the leaves is turned towards the light precisely when the sun's rays are at their highest.