William Weber believes that  "Senecio is [such] an enormous, very unnatural genus....  [that] all of our Senecio species except the annual Senecio vulgaris... seem destined to be segregated into other genera."  Weber has moved a number of Senecio into Packera and Ligularia and a number of prominent botanists now accept these splits.

    Senecios are variable in growth characteristics and can be difficult to identify.  All Senecios pictured on this web site are common to very common in the San Juans or nearby Canyon Country.

    "Senecio" is from the Latin, "senes", "old man", and refers to the pappus hairs, the white, tiny, hair-like growth at the apex of the seeds in Asteraceae.

Montane. Woodlands, openings. Spring, summer.
Shearer Creek Trail, May 17, 2006.

Senecio wootonii is not common in the Four Corners, but when one finds it, one usually finds hundreds of plants, often in large colonies.  Each plant can have dozens of bright yellow flowers on a stem with few, small leaves above large, smooth, deep green basal leaves. The stem is light green with faint vertical streaks.

The plant was named by Edward Greene for New Mexico botanist E. O. Wooton (1865-1945).   (More biographical information.)

Montane. Woodlands, openings. Spring, summer.
Near Haviland Lake, June 17, 2009.

Basal rosettes (sprouting from roots of nearby plants), can consist of few to many leaves.  In open, sunny areas basal rosettes will usually consist of many leaves; rosettes in the shade might have just two or three leaves.

Montane. Woodlands, openings. Spring, summer.
Near Haviland Lake, June 17, 2009.

Basal leaves are glabrous (smooth, not hairy), have a long petiole that is slightly winged, and have denticles (small tooth-like projections on the leaf margin).

Montane. Woodlands, openings. Spring, summer.
Shearer Creek Trail, May 17, 2006.

Flower buds at first appear to consist only of disk flowers but time shows the long, bright yellow ray flowers as well as the disk flowers.

Montane. Woodlands, openings. Spring, summer.
Near Haviland Lake, June 17, 2009.

On plants in full sun, flowers are numerous (as shown in the photograph at the top of this page).  The flower at left was the only one on its plant which grew in deep shade.  Notice the long, slender white pappus hairs sticking out from the slender, green phyllaries.

Range map © John Kartesz,
Floristic Synthesis of North America

State Color Key

Species present in state and native
Species present in state and exotic
Species not present in state

County Color Key

Species present and not rare
Species present and rare
Species extirpated (historic)
Species extinct
Species noxious
Species exotic and present
Native species, but adventive in state
Eradicated
Questionable presence

Range map for Senecio wootonii