Celmisia densiflora
Common names
mountain daisy
Biostatus
Native
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Herbs - Dicotyledonous composites
Flower colours
White, Yellow
Detailed description
Tufted herb with stout woody simple or sparingly branched stock; leaf-sheaths densely imbricating, forming a pseudo-stem. Lamina coriaceous, narrow- to narrowly obovate-oblong, ± 60-150 × 15-40 mm, obtuse or subacute; upper surface glabrous or nearly so; lower densely clad in appressed white satiny tomentum; both with evident midrib; margins very slightly recurved, bluntly (sometimes apiculately) crenate-sinuate, narrowed to petiole of diverse dimensions; sheath strongly ribbed, glabrous or very nearly so, c.50 × 10 mm. Scape ± 150-400 mm long, glabrous, glandular-viscid, purplish, stout; bracts linear, lamina ± 25-40 mm long, apiculate, clad below in white satiny tomentum. Capitula 25-40 mm diameter; involucral bracts numerous, linear-subulate, glabrous, viscid, up to c.15 mm long, apex hairy. Ray-florets c.15-20 mm long, narrow; disk-florets 7-8 mm long, funnelform, teeth narrow-triangular, c.1 mm long. Achenes compressed-cylindric, c.6 mm long, strongly grooved, with appressed silky hairs on ribs. Pappus-hairs slender, up to c. 6 mm long, white to sordid-white, barbellate.
Similar taxa
Allan (1961) aligned this species with Celmisia parva, from which he distinguished it by the larger leaves (60-150 x 15-40 mm cf. < 60 x15 mm in C. parva) which are conspicuously rather than minutely toothed. However, the late A.P. Druce regarded C. densiflora and C. prorepens as the same species. Further study into the status of this species pair, as indeed the taxonomic status of all Celmisia is urgently needed.
Distribution
Endemic. South Island: From southern Marlborough and North Canterbury south to northern Southland.
Habitat
Montane to subalpine. Inhabiting grassland, herbfield, fell-field and open subalpine shrubland.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – these interim threat classification statuses has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | Not Threatened
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Asteraceae
Synonyms
None
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
November - January
Fruiting
December - April
Propagation technique
Easily grown in a shaded site, planted within a permanently moist, free draining, acidic soil. Dislikes humidity and will not tolerate drying out. Best grown from fresh seed which should be sown immediately or stratified in a fridge or freezer for 1-3 months.
Other information
Where To Buy
Not commercially available.
Etymology
celmisia: Apparently named after Kelmis, one of Idaean Dactyls, a group of skilled mythical beings associated with the Mother Goddess Rhea in Greek mythology. Kelmis, whose name means ‘casting’, was a blacksmith and childhood friend of Zeus, son of Rhea and later king of the gods. In Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’, Kelmis is described as offending Zeus who turned him into adamant so he was as hard as a tempered blade
densiflora: Densely flowered
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
CELDEN
Chromosome number
2n = 108
Previous conservation statuses
2017 | Not Threatened
2012 | Not Threatened
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Allan, H.H. 1961: Flora of New Zealand. Volume I. Government Printer, Wellington.
Attribution
Description adapted from Allan (1961)
Some of this factsheet information is derived from Flora of New Zealand Online and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand licence.