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Southern Tauschia
- Tauschia arguta

Common Name(s):Southern Tauschia
Scientific Name:Tauschia arguta
Family:Apiaceae (Carrot)
Plant Type:Perennial
Size:up to 30 inches
Habitat:dry slopes in Sage Scrub, Woodlands and Chaparral
Blooms:February to June
Fire Response:Germinate from Seed

Southern Tauschia is probably more recognizable by its jagged, shiny leaves than by its smaller yellow flowers. Most of the leaves of this plant are at its base and arranged in a pinnately compound fashion along ribbed stems. Individually the leaves are ovate and sharply saw-toothed, up to 3 inches long. The small bright yellow flowers rise above the leaves in compound umbels. Bloom time is February to June.

The genus name Tauschia comes from the name of a 19th century Czech professor of botany, Ignaz Friedrich Tausch. The species name arguta means toothed-leaves. A similar-looking plant is the Shiny Lomatium, or Lomatium lucidum.

Contributed by Liz Baumann

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Southern Tauschia - Originally featured: February 2013
Last modified: May 17 2024 13:55:04.
Number of Images: 9
Image Size Total: 1,380,296

References:

Wildflowers of the Santa Monica Mountains, by Milt McAuley
Flowering Plants: The Santa Monica Mountains, Coastal and Chaparral Regions of Southern California, by Nancy Dale
Chumash Ethnobotany: Plant Knowledge Among the Chumash People, by Jan Timbrook
Leaf Shapes Primer - Botanical Terms for Leaves: - Link

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