Pseudogynoxys chenopodioides (Kunth) Cabrera, Asteraceae

Click on an image for links to BIGGER PICTURES

Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 7 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Senecio chenopodioides HBK.; Senecio confusus Britten; Senecio kermesinus Hemsl.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: Mexican flamevine, orange-flowered senecio

Habit:  vine

Description:  "Small herbaceous to large suffrutescent vines, the stems multistriate, sparsely hispidulous to almost glabrous, up to 5 m and perhaps longer; leaves alternate, petiolate or nearly sessile, lanceolate to lanceolate-ovate, rarely subcordate, acute or acuminate, densely hispidulous to glabrous, serrate-dentate, the teeth sometimes glandular, the blade 3-12 cm long and 1-7 cm broad; inflorescence a single head to a multicapitate panicle; heads heterogamous, variable in size, 1-3 cm high (commonly 1.5 cm) and as broad; involucre uniseriate, subtended usually by several conspicuous bracteoles, mostly about 1 cm long; phyllaries numerous, linear, acuminate, densely hispidulous to glabrous, the mid-nerve thickened, phyllaries half as long as the head or usually longer; ray corollas orange (usually) to reddish, uniseriate; disc corollas yellow to orange or red, mostly about 1 cm long, tubular to narrowly campanulate above; achenes hispidulous, cylindric, obscurely ridged, to about 4 mm long; pappus abundant, white, slightly shorter than the disc corollas" (Nash & Williams, 1976; pp. 406-407).

Habitat/ecology:  In Guatemala, "thickets and forest edges, commonly at 700-1,200 m but found from near sea level to 2,200 m" (Nash & Williams, 1976; pp. 406-407).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Mexico, Central America to Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela and Colombia (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Vouchers cited: as Senecio chenopodioides K.S. Kunth.: J. Florence 2862 (PAP) as Senecio confusus J. Britten: J. Florence 6629 (PAP) Ornementale rare.
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 290)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Parker, James L./Parsons, Bobby (2012) (p. 57) Voucher cited: J. Parker & R. Parsons BIED71 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Starr, Forest/Starr, Kim (year unknown) http://www.hear.org/mysteryplants/autogendhtml/mysteryplant3.htm
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Vander Velde, Nancy (2003) (p. 72) Planted ornamental.

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	El Salvador (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 73) Cultivated only
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Colombia	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)

Comments:  Reported as possibly an invasive plant in the Galápagos Islands per Charles Darwin Research Station.

Control:  If you know of control methods for Pseudogynoxys chenopodioides, please let us know.