Eryngium planum L.
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Authority
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.
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Family
Apiaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Perennial to 1 m from a thickened, woody taproot; lvs net-veined, the basal and lower cauline with elliptic-oblong to elliptic-ovate, crenate to spinulose-serrate blade 4–10 cm rounded or cordate at base to the long petiole, the others progressively less petiolate (or sessile), more sharply toothed or cleft, and often broader; heads bluish, ± ovoid, 1.5–2 cm, subtended by spreading, narrow, spinulose-toothed to entire bracts 1.5–3 cm; bractlets firm, 5–6 mm, the lower tricuspidate; 2n=16. Native of Europe, sparingly intr. in fields and waste places, as in N.Y. June, July.
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Discussion
Two other taprooted European spp. are also rarely intr. with us. E. maritimum L. has very firm, broad, palmately veined (and often lobed), very strongly spiny-margined lvs. E. campestre L., also very spiny, has more pinnate and more dissected lvs, the principal ones with a broad, green, spiny-toothed midstrip