BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Liatris punctata | Blazing Star 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Blazing star is a native, warm-season, perennial forb [40].  It has one
to several stems 4 to 32 inches (0.1-0.8 m) tall [20].  The
inflorescence is a dense spike up to 12 inches (30 cm) long [40].  The
fruit is an achene.  The pappus is persistent [3].  The stems arise from
an erect or weakly spreading thick, short rootstock elongated into a
thickened taproot [20].  The taproot is 4.25 to 16.4 feet (1.3-5 m)
deep, with laterals at various levels [3].  Blazing star develops
rhizomes [31].

Blazing star develops slowly and is very long lived.  Ring counts in
root crowns showed plant ages greater than 35 years [45].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Hemicryptophyte
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Blazing star reproduces vegetatively by sprouting from rhizomes and
sexually by wind-disseminated seeds [31] which have a very long plumose
pappus [14].  The seeds have two periods of maximum germination: in the
spring after fall maturation, and during the following fall [7].
Blazing star germinates under a wide range of conditions, but optimal
conditions for germination may vary geographically.  Germination
response from seed in three areas follows.

Blazing star seed fill was about 40 percent in southeastern Montana in
1976 and 1977.  Germination was optimal for new seed at 68 to 86 degrees
Fahrenheit (20-30 deg C).  For seed 10 months old germination was best
at 68/41 degrees Fahrenheit (20/5 deg C) alternating temperatures.
Stratification of less than 1 month duration was insufficient.
Germination during stratification was quite high, and higher with new
seed than old.  Low temperature (39 degrees Fahrenheit [4 deg C])
storage had no effect on germination.  Light appeared to promote
germination at lower (50 degree Fahrenheit [10 deg C]) temperatures
[14].

Blazing star seed collected in south-central South Dakota was tested for
germination.  Of the seeds collected, 26.5 percent had mature embryos,
and these were maintained in darkness at a constant 70 degrees
Fahrenheit (21 deg C) for 30 days.  Forty-seven percent of the seeds
germinated within 8 to 22 days, requiring neither moist-cold nor
scarification treatments [38].

Blazing star seeds from western North Dakota were stored under three
different conditions, with storage beginning December 1, 1977.  There
was no significant difference in germination rate due to storage
conditions of dry cold, wet cold, or room temperature.  Seeds were
tested for germination rate each month from January through May, 1978.
Blazing star seeds had the highest germination rate in April, averaging
about 71 percent over all storage conditions [5,6].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Blazing star inhabits dry, open, upland sites, especially in sandy soil
[20].  It is found on dry prairie [3], dry plains, and hills [40].
Blazing star is also found on calcareous soils on the Edwards Plateau
and in the Guadelupe Mountains of Texas [25].

Blazing star growth is poor on dense clay, poor to fair on clay, fair to
good on gravel, sand, and clay loam, and good on sandy loam and loam.
Growth is poor on acidic and saline soils.  Optimum soil depth is 20
inches (50 cm) or more.  Blazing star makes good growth on gentle and
moderate slopes and fair growth on steep slopes [12].

Blazing star occurs at the following elevations:

                     Elevation (feet)    Elevation (m)

          CO           3,500-8,000        1,067-2,438    [21]
          MT           2,800-6,400          853-1,951    [12]
          SD           3,600-5,000        1,097-1,524    [37]
          WY           3,700-7,400        1,128-2,255    [12].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Facultative Seral Species

Blazing star is a member of the mature prairie community [35] and does
not tolerate deep litter or shading [31].  It often increases after
disturbance [35].

Blazing star was found to be a major forb species in scattered ponderosa
pine (Pinus ponderosa) in mixed-prairie in northwestern Nebraska.  It
was reduced in importance where the trees were more closely spaced, and
was not present where trees were dense [42]

Blazing star occurs in western wheatgrass (Pascopyrum smithii)-blue
grama communities in south-central South Dakota on silt loam soils
disturbed by grazing and drought [41].

Blazing star occurred on some badger-disturbed sites in tallgrass
prairie of northwestern Iowa.  Seedlings were present in the spring of
the first growing season following disturbance.  During the second
growing season blazing star began to reproduce vegetatively.  On
reaching maturity, 94.1 percent of blazing star plants on disturbed
sites flowered [35].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Blazing star seeds generally germinate in the spring, and to a lesser
extent in the fall.  The seedling grows only a few inches the first year
and remains in the rosette stage [6,7].  During this time it develops a
taproot up to 35 inches (89 cm) deep and accumulates some reserve food.
In later years it develops extensive taproots [45].  After the first
year blazing star begins growth in spring and attains its mature height
in late summer [18].

Blazing star flowering times are:

                  Begin          Peak             End
                Flowering      Flowering       Flowering

     CO         August         August          September  [12]
     IL         August           ----          October    [33]
     KS         August         September       October    [23]
     MT         July           August          September  [12]
     ND         July           August          September  [9]
     WY         July           August          September  [12] 
Great Plains    July             ----          October    [20].

In central North Dakota blazing star populations bloom an average of
38 days each year [9].  In western North Dakota blazing star attains its
mature height by mid-August [18].

Related categories for Species: Liatris punctata | Blazing Star