Description: Perennial herbs or shrubs, glabrous to glandular-pubescent.
Leaves cauline, alternate, entire to toothed or lobed, sessile.
Heads terminal, solitary or numerous in cymes or panicles; involucral bracts herbaceous with scarious margins, imbricate in several series, graduated, unequal; receptacle naked, flat to slightly convex. Outer disc florets numerous, female, fertile, filiform, 2- or 3-toothed, without ligules; inner disc florets fewer, bisexual, sterile, tubular, 4- or 5-toothed. Anthers tailed. Style branches filiform, glabrous.
Achenes ± terete, ribbed, glabrous or hairy; pappus a single row of numerous fine bristles, minutely barbellate.
Distribution and occurrence: World: c. 50 species, temperate & tropical America, Africa & subtropical Asia. Australia: 13 species (10 species endemic), all mainland States except Vic.
Text by M. F. Porteners & G. J. Harden
Taxon concept:
| | Key to the species | |
| 1 | Leaves entire, narrow-linear | Pluchea baccharoides |
| Leaves toothed, linear to obovate | 2 |
| 2 | Bases of leaves not decurrent, stems not winged | 3 |
| Bases of leaves decurrent to form wings down the stem
Back to 1 | Pluchea rubelliflora |
| 3 | Leaves linear to narrow-oblanceolate, the margins with linear teeth; heads 7–14 mm diam., 1–4 in loose, leafy cymes; involucral bracts linear, loosely imbricate | Pluchea dentex |
| Leaves obovate to cuneate, the margins with triangular teeth; heads 2.5–5 mm diam., numerous in dense, leafless cymes; involucral bracts lanceolate to ovate, closely imbricate
Back to 2 | Pluchea dunlopii |
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