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Purple-head Sneezeweed
Helenium flexuosum C. Rafinesque-Schmaltz
Asteraceae :
Helenieae
This plant is an infrequent perennial
herb found in moist, sandy places whose leaves are usually
mostly gone by flowering time. Historically used as
a medicinal herb, Helenium flexuosum use is
now cautioned because, as with other plants of this
genus, it is unpalatable and toxic to livestock, causing
sickness or even death. Past uses included: ground flower
heads (and sometimes leaves) used as a snuff to clear
the sinuses (thus the name 'Sneezeweed'); and leaves
used in a tea as a laxative.
The ray flowers (petals) are infertile
and may not be present at all. When they are, they have
a variable flower color, ranging from yellow to red to
purple.
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Behind the Name :
There are about 40 species in the genus
Helenium, located mostly in western America.
Helenium species are sometimes grouped into
the tribe Heliantheae instead of Helenieae.
- Helenium -
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Named for Helen of Troy. (I
have read two different reasons behind this: that
Helen was picking these flowers when she was kidnapped,
and another that says that these flowers would
come up wherever her tears hit the ground. Perhaps
it was both...)
- flexuosum -
-
Tortuous or winding
Also known as Helenium nudiflorum.
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Tags :
native Texas wildflower, Texas native
wildflower, Texas native plant, perennial, herb, alternate
leaves, full sun, Spring flowers, Summer flowers, sporadic
Fall flowers, yellow flowers, orange flowers, red flowers,
purple flowers, reddish-brown flowers, medicinal plant,
purplehead sneezeweed, purpleheaded sneezeweed, purple-headed
sneezeweed, prairies, meadows, pastures
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