Perennial caulescent, partly woody and partly fleshy plants, with opposite narrow entire leaves, the lower connate-sheathing, and corymbose heterogamous radiate heads. Involucre of few broad many-nerved bracts. Receptacle flat or slightly convex, naked. Ray-flowers pistillate, fertile, the rays yellow, spreading or recurved. Disk-flowers perfect, fertile. Anthers obtuse and entire at the base. Style-branches of the disk-flowers capitate-truncate. Achenes narrow, 10-ribbed. Pappus of 1 series of slender scabrous bristles. [Greek, simple garment, the involucre composed of few bracts.]

A monotypic genus of the south-central United States and Mexico.

1. Haploesthes Greggii A. Gray. Gregg's Haploesthes

Fig. 4604

Haploesthes Greggii A. Gray, Mem. Am. Acad. (II) 4: 109. 1849.

Stems usually branched at the base, the branches 1°-2° tall, glabrous, striate, corymbose above. Leaves fleshy, the lower ones connate and sheathing the stem, narrowly linear or linear-filiform, 3/4'-2' long, entire; heads short-peduncled, few together in cymes; involucres 1 1/2"-2" high, the bracts oval to orbicular, rounded at the apex, thin-margined; rays yellow, 1"-2" long; achenes 1" long.

In saline and gypsum soil, Kansas and southern Colorado to Texas and Mexico. April-Sept.