12 - Assa-peixe roxo - Lessingianthus glabratus (Less.) H.Rob. (Asteraceae)

 

Perennial shrub plant, erect, up to 2 m tall, branched, with rough leaves and leather texture, lanceolate, glabrous. Stem erect and hairy, greenish. With tuberous roots. Small groups of flowers at the tip of the branches, in violet color.

 

Distribution: Midwest, South and Southeast. Native plant in rupicolous environments and in cerrado formations.

​

Situation in São Paulo: Known as a weed, it is seen in fragments and patches of cerrado, by the side of roads and even in environments with high disturbance. Potentially invasive plant.

​

How to plant: It reproduces well by collecting its seeds and spreading them over the soil. To transplant it is best to use a shovel and remove the clod, keeping the roots intact.

​

Uses: Potential as a perennial ornamental plant, due to its flowers that attract bees and butterflies.

​

 

BIONDI, D .; LEAL, L .; BATISTA, AC PHENOLOGY OF FLOWERING AND FRUITIFICATION OF NATIVE SPECIES OF CAMPOS-DOI: 10.4025 / ACTASCIBIOLSCI. V29I3. 478. ACTA SCIENTIARUM. BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, V. 29, N. 3, P. 269-276, 2007.