A Revision of Senecio aureus Linn. and Allied Species

This study includes those temperate North American species of Senecio which are herbaceous perennials; which are glabrous or nearly so; which have one to several stems arising from a horizontal to suberect, fibrous-rooted caudex or rhizome; which have a cluster of petiolate basal leaves; and which have the cauline leaves progressively reduced upward. With the possible exception of several peripheral taxa, these species are believed to constitute an essentially natural assemblage. This concept approximates the section Aurei Rydb. (Bull. Torr. Bot. Club 27:173. 1900), and throughout this treatment the aggregated species are referred to as the Aurei. However, because the relationships of the Aurei to the remainder of Senecio are not yet fully understood, I believe it better to regard the Aurei as a convenient species-group, rather than as a formal taxonomic section.