United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 Texas Go to Accessibility Information
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Gayfeather

Scientific Name: Liatris spp. Gaertn. ex Schreb.
Common Name: Gayfeather or Blazing Star

Morphological Characteristics:

Habit- native perennial herbs that grow from underground corms; erect or spreading stems; height varies by species; flowers June to October depending on species; reproduces by seed
Leaves- linear
Flowers- purple to white
Fruit- an achene with pappus (hairy parachute-like appendages)

Habitat and Range: 12 species know to occur in Texas; most occur in East to South Texas

Conservation Use:

Why collect this plant? Texas Plant Materials Centers have identified this plant as having potential benefits to the following conservation practice standards: 562 Recreation Area Improvement and 645 Upland Wildlife Habitat. Your assistance in collecting this plant helps support the NRCS conservation practice standards which are employed daily to conserve the natural resources of Texas!

Centers Requesting Seed:

E. Kika de la Garza PMC

How to Collect Seed

  1. Identify native plant stands in your area. You can go to the following websites for helpful photos http://plants.usda.gov or http://www.noble.org/imagegallery/index.html or www.wildflower.org
  2. Determine if seed is mature. Mature seed is typically dry and will easily separate from the seed head.
  3. Hand strip mature seed by grasping the bottom of the seed head then gently pulling away from the base of the plant. Deposit seed in a brown paper sack. Collect seed from a minimum of 30 to 50 plants.
  4. Label each collection as it is made so collections do not get mixed up. Information required includes: Collector’s name, number of plants collected, location (parish, city, highway, GPS coordinates), site description (soil type, slope, plants growing in association).
  5. Complete NRCS-ECS-580; Plant Collection Information Form and mail with collected seeds to the NRCS Plant Materials Center requesting the species.

E. Kika de la Garza Plant Materials Center
3409 N FM 1355
Kingsville, TX 78363

Helpful Tips

Look for superior plants that display differences in color, height, or forage abundance and record observations. Differences in growing site or location should be made into separate collections if they are separated by more than 1 mile between sites.

It is easier to locate plants while in bloom, but seed can not be collected till dry and brown or black in color. The hairy appendages on the seed should be off-white in color. If they are still purple or pink, the seed is not mature. Look for plants beginning to lose their seed as a sign of maturity.

Other Photos:

Gayfeather

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NRCS Species for 2008 Plant Collections - Gayfeather (PDF; 2 MB)