Madia Molina

Last Addition: July 26, 2000.  Each "thumbnail" image below is linked to a larger photograph.

Madia is a genus of 10 annual, commonly ruderal species distributed widely in western North America, Chile, and Argentina.  Plants 0.1-25 dm high.  Heads generally radiate, phyllaries (0)1 - 21, equaling the number of ray florets, enclosing the ray ovaries and falling with the mature cypselae; ray florets pistillate,  corolla commonly yellow or yellowish, sometimes tinged or spotted with maroon or purple, the tube 0.5 - 5 mm long, the limb 0.7 - 20 mm long, 2-3-lobed; receptacular chaff peripheral, generally more or less fused in a ring; disk florets 1 - 65, perfect or staminate, the corolla 1.3 - 5.5 mm long, similar in color to rays, the anthers black or yellow; ray cypselae compressed or 3-angled, epappose; disk cypselae (where present) similar to those of ray florets or less angular and less compressed, epappose.  Chromosome numbers of  n = 8, 14, 16, and 24 have been recorded for the genus.

	M. elegans.  1, 2, Ventana Wilderness, Santa Lucia Mts., Monterey Co., CA.; 3, "densiflora"; 4,  Butte Co., CA.; 4,
	M. exigua, cultivated.
	M. glomerata
	M. radiata, Bitterwater Rd., near Pinole Spring, San Luis Obispo Co., CA.
	M. sativa. 1, habit of plant in Haleakala Crater, Maui;  2, Cambria, CA.; 3, close-up of heads of cultivated plant.

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