About Homogyne alpina (L.) Cass.
Homogyne alpina (L.) Cass., commonly called Alpine coltsfoot or purple colt's-foot, is a rhizomatous perennial herb in the family Asteraceae, often grown as an ornamental plant. This species is commonly associated with the gall flies Ensina sonchi and Acidia cognata. It produces purple-red flowers and grows to a height of 10 to 40 centimeters. Its rhizome is creeping, woolly, and scaly. The stem is erect, reddish brown, and typically bears a single flower head; it is covered in silvery-woolly hairs, becomes bare as it matures, and usually holds 2 small scale-like leaves. All leaves of Homogyne alpina are basal, long-stalked, leathery, coarse, and glossy dark green, with a lighter-colored underside. The leaf blade is heart-kidney-shaped. Flower heads reach up to 15 millimeters in diameter. The bracts are arranged in a single row, crowded, and covered in brown-red woolly hairs at the base, and the flowers themselves are purple. Homogyne alpina grows in the mountains of South Central Europe, at altitudes ranging from 500 to 3000 meters. It grows on moist, humus-rich, mossy soil in coniferous forests, shrublands, and dwarf-shrub heath. In the United Kingdom, this species is only recorded from a single location in Angus, Scotland, where its status as native or introduced remains uncertain.
