Common name: Goatsbeard
Tragopogon dubius Scop. APNI*
Description: Erect biennial herb to 1 m high.
Basal leaves grass-like, linear, half sheathing at base, acute, to 50 cm long, c. 10 mm wide; cauline leaves lanceolate, acute, stem-clasping; upper cauline leaves up to 10 cm long; lower cauline leaves same size as basal leaves.
Heads 15–30 mm diam., opening in morning and closed during day; peduncles hollow, swollen below head; involucral bracts 8–12, 3–6 cm long, glabrous or with fine tomentum near apex. Ray florets yellow, shorter than involucral bracts.
Achenes ribbed, body 10–15 mm long, beak c. 10 mm long, outer coarsely muricate to spinulose, inner almost smooth; pappus 15–25 mm long, plumose, in 2 rows.
Distribution and occurrence: Naturalized on roadsides and wasteland in Cooma and Kosciusko National Park areas. Native of Europe. One record possibly for Central Western Slopes, near Temora, in 1914.
NSW subdivisions: *CC, *NT, *ST, *CWS
Other Australian states: *Tas.
Text by L. Murray
Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 3 (1992)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.