Mariola - Parthenium incannum
Warm Springs Wash
NE of Hillsboro, NM, USA
Late August 2016
Photograph above and following two below
In late August, 2016, we took a walk up Warm Springs Wash, northeast of Hillsboro. The hillside was covered in blooming Mariola, Parthenium incanum, some of which is shown here.
Parthenium incanum was first described by Carl Sigismund Kunth in 1818. I know of no scientific synonyms or alternative Common English names for the species.
As shown in the BONAP map to the right, this species is limited to the southwest in the United States, it ranges southward to Southwestern Mexico. Light green on the map indicates that the species is native to, and not rare within, the county specified.
The initial publication of the species description was made in Volume 4 (page 391) of “Nova Genera et Species Plantarum”, shown below.
The Native American Ethnobotany Data Base notes that the fresh leaves of this plant were used by the Mescalero and Chiricahua Apache as a drink. The leaves were boiled in water.
Parthenium incanum, Mariola
White Sands Missile Range
September 21, 2019
Photograph immediately above and three below
