About Senecio sylvaticus L.
Senecio sylvaticus L. is a species of flowering plant in the aster family. It has several common names: woodland ragwort, heath groundsel, and mountain common groundsel. This species is native to Eurasia, and has been introduced to other regions across the world, including western and eastern North America, where it grows as an introduced species and occasional roadside weed. It grows best in cool, wet locations. It is an annual herb that grows a single erect stem up to 80 centimeters tall from a taproot. The entire plant is covered in short, curly hairs. Its toothed, deeply lobed leaves can reach up to 12 centimeters long, are borne on petioles, and are distributed evenly along the stem. The inflorescence is a wide, spreading cluster of many flower heads. Each flower head is lined with phyllaries that have green or black tips. The heads hold yellow disc florets, and most also have very small yellow ray florets.
