Cosmos sulphureus (sulphur cosmos)
Index
- Pictures
- Identity
- Summary of Invasiveness
- Taxonomic Tree
- Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Description
- Plant Type
- Distribution
- Distribution Table
- History of Introduction and Spread
- Risk of Introduction
- Habitat
- Habitat List
- Biology and Ecology
- Climate
- Latitude/Altitude Ranges
- Air Temperature
- Soil Tolerances
- Means of Movement and Dispersal
- Pathway Causes
- Pathway Vectors
- Impact Summary
- Risk and Impact Factors
- Uses
- Uses List
- Similarities to Other Species/Conditions
- Gaps in Knowledge/Research Needs
- References
- Contributors
- Distribution Maps
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Top of pagePreferred Scientific Name
- Cosmos sulphureus Cav.
Preferred Common Name
- sulphur cosmos
Other Scientific Names
- Bidens artemisiifolia (Jacq.) Kuntze
- Bidens artemisiifolia var. sulphurea (Cav.) Kuntze
- Bidens sulphurea (Cav.) Sch.Bip.
- Coreopsis artemisiifolia Jacq.
- Cosmos artemisiifolius (Jacq.) M.R.Almeida
- Cosmos aurantiacus Klatt
International Common Names
- English: cosmos; orange cosmos; yellow cosmos
- Spanish: cempual; chochopali; girasol amarillo; mirasol amarillo; San Miguel; sochipal; suchipate
- French: cosmos soufré
- Chinese: liu huang ju
Local Common Names
- Brazil: beijo de moça; cosmo amarelo; klondike cosmos; picão de flor grande; picão grande
- Costa Rica: cambray
- Cuba: estrella del norte
- Dominican Republic: cyemita
- El Salvador: botón de oro; flor de muerto
- Germany: gelbes Schmuckkorbchen
- Honduras: clavel de muerto
- Japan: kibana-kosumosu
- Mexico: axal-xóchitl; ecaxtli; ehcaxtli; mirasol yellow; shinul; xinula; xochipal; xochipali
- Micronesia, Federated states of: barung; purang; purang palap
- Myanmar: paw-me-tar; sein-chai-kadipa
- Nicaragua: chambray
- Portugal: cosmos-amarelo
- Puerto Rico: panchita
- Russian Federation: kosmos zelyj
- Sweden: gullskara
Summary of Invasiveness
Top of pageCosmos sulphureus is a prolific seed-producing annual herb considered native to Mexico and northern South America. It grows to two metres tall, and sports very attractive heads of yellow flowers. There are numerous popular cultivars of C. sulphureus in the international horticultural trade, resulting in its wide and intentional spread by humans. The species has been known to escape cultivation and to naturalize. It is recorded as an environmental weed and occasionally as an invasive plant in parts of Africa, Asia, North and Central America and Pacific Islands though details of impact are lacking.
Taxonomic Tree
Top of page- Domain: Eukaryota
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Phylum: Spermatophyta
- Subphylum: Angiospermae
- Class: Dicotyledonae
- Order: Asterales
- Family: Asteraceae
- Genus: Cosmos
- Species: Cosmos sulphureus
Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature
Top of pageAsteraceae is one of the largest families of flowering plants, containing approximately 1620 genera and more than 23,600 species (Stevens, 2012). In their vegetative state, the members of this family are extremely variable, but they are easily recognized by their flowers (florets) in heads (capitula) surrounded by an involucre of bracts. The small, single-seeded fruit (cypsela), often with a plumose pappus, aids wind dispersal (Stevens, 2012). However, Cosmos belongs to a group of genera that have awns instead of a feathery pappus.
Members of the genus Cosmos originated in the tropical and subtropical regions of the new world, especially in Mexico. About 40 species have their centre of diversity in Mexico. Several species have been introduced around the world, becoming naturalized, and occasionally invasive. These species are closely allied to the beggarticks genera, Coreopsis and Bidens, whose generic boundaries are currently in a state of flux.
C. sulphureus was first described by Cavanilles (1791) from plants cultivated in the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid from Mexican seed, but the date of its introduction is unknown. It was again described by Jacquin (1793) from plants cultivated in Vienna, Austria (Burkill, 1930). Melchert (1976) described the species as a pantropical weed “doubtlessly native to hot, subtropical regions of central and southern Mexico”.
The genus name Cosmos derives from the Greek word kosmos, literally translated as ‘beauty’ (Smith, 1972) with a “root idea of orderliness; hence an ornament or beautiful thing” (Bailey, 1924). The species name sulphureus is in reference to the orange-yellow colours of the plant’s flower (Smith, 1972).
Description
Top of pageC. sulphureus is an annual herb 0.3-2 m tall, taprooted. Stems erect, branched, glabrous or sparsely pilose to hispid. Leaves cauline, alternate, deeply lobed; petioles 10-70 mm long; blades 50-250 mm long; ultimate lobes 2-5 mm wide; margins sparsely spinulose-ciliate; apices apiculate. Synflorescences 100-200 mm long, spreading-ascending; bractlets linear-subulate 5-10 mm long with acute apices. Capitula 6-10 mm diameter; involucral bracts erect, oblong-lanceolate, 9-18 mm long with acute to rounded-obtuse apices; ray florets 8(+ in some cultivars) golden yellow to red-orange; laminae obovate, 18-30 mm long with truncate, denticulate apices; disc florets 6-7 mm long. Cypselae light brown, flattened, 1.5-3 mm long, hispidulous, rarely glabrous; pappus absent, or with two or three widely divergent awns, 1-7 mm long (description compiled from Beentje and Hind, 2005; Kiger, 2006; Chen and Hind, 2011; C Puttock, Smithsonian Institution, USA, personal observation).
Distribution
Top of pageC. sulphureus is native to Mexico, and possibly northwestern South America (USDA-ARS, 2016), but is also now cultivated and sometimes naturalized in temperate and tropical locations around the world (Villaseñor Ríos and Espinosa García, 1998). It is likely that it has been moved both deliberately and unintentionally throughout Mexico into the southern USA. Strother (1999) states that, in the region of Chiapas, southern Mexico, the species is widely cultivated and is likely to be adventive. Other authors of Central American floras describe the species as ruderal, occurring along roadsides, or escaping cultivation as a garden weed. In Puerto Rico, for example, the species is a common plant, found on roadsides and occasionally cultivated in gardens. It is also known to have escaped in parts of Florida, the Caribbean and South America (Liogier and Martorell, 2000; Randall, 2012) and is considered invasive by CenBIO (Acevedo-Rodríguez and Strong, 2012). It has been recorded as a native plant in Colombia (Vascular Plants of Antioquia, 2016), Ecuador (Vascular Plants of Ecuador, 2016) and Peru (Peru Checklist, 2016) but other records for South America list C. sulphureus as naturalized (e.g. Robinson, 2006; Mondin, 2014; USDA-ARS, 2016). This species is included in the Global Compendium of Weeds, recorded as naturalized and also weedy in parts of the USA, New Zealand and Australia (Randall, 2012). It is naturalized across parts of Africa and Asia and has sometimes been recorded as an invasive species.
Work carried out by Wagner et al. (2016) on Hawaii does not include any species of the Cosmos genus, but the species is cultivated in other parts of the Pacific including French Polynesia and Micronesia.
C. sulphureus is not listed in the European database of alien species (DAISIE, 2017), but has been reported to be adventive in Belgium and Poland (USDA-ARS, 2016).
Distribution Table
Top of pageThe distribution in this summary table is based on all the information available. When several references are cited, they may give conflicting information on the status. Further details may be available for individual references in the Distribution Table Details section which can be selected by going to Generate Report.
Last updated: 17 Dec 2021Continent/Country/Region | Distribution | Last Reported | Origin | First Reported | Invasive | Reference | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Africa |
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Cameroon | Present | Introduced | |||||
Eswatini | Present | Introduced | |||||
Kenya | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Malawi | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Mauritius | Present | Introduced | |||||
Mozambique | Present | Introduced | |||||
Réunion | Present | Introduced | |||||
Senegal | Present | Introduced | |||||
South Africa | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Sudan | Present | Introduced | |||||
Tanzania | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Behaves like a weed | |||
Uganda | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Zambia | Present | Introduced | |||||
Zimbabwe | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Asia |
|||||||
Bhutan | Present | Introduced | 2001 | ||||
China | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Present based on regional records | |||
-Beijing | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
-Guangdong | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
-Yunnan | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
India | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
Japan | Present | Introduced | |||||
Myanmar | Present | Cultivated | |||||
North Korea | Present | Introduced | 2009 | ||||
Philippines | Present | Introduced | Introduced as ornamental | ||||
Singapore | Present, Only in captivity/cultivation | Introduced | Cultivated only | ||||
South Korea | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Sri Lanka | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Europe |
|||||||
Belgium | Present | Introduced | Adventive | ||||
Poland | Present | Introduced | Adventive | ||||
North America |
|||||||
Antigua and Barbuda | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Belize | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Bermuda | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
British Virgin Islands | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Tortola, Virgin Gorda | |||
Cayman Islands | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Costa Rica | Present | Introduced | |||||
Cuba | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Dominica | Present | Introduced | First reported: <1985 | ||||
Dominican Republic | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
El Salvador | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
Guatemala | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Haiti | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Honduras | Present | Introduced | |||||
Mexico | Present | Native | |||||
Montserrat | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Nicaragua | Present | Introduced | |||||
Panama | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Cultivation escape, naturalized | |||
Puerto Rico | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Saint Lucia | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
U.S. Virgin Islands | Present | Introduced | Invasive | St. Thomas | |||
United States | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Present based on regional records | |||
-Alabama | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Arkansas | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-California | Present | Introduced | Uncommon escape from cultivation, weed | ||||
-Connecticut | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Delaware | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Florida | Present | Introduced | Escaped | ||||
-Georgia | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Illinois | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Louisiana | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Maryland | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Michigan | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Mississippi | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Missouri | Present, Few occurrences | Introduced | Uncommon and sporadic | ||||
-New Jersey | Present | Introduced | |||||
-New York | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-North Carolina | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Oklahoma | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Pennsylvania | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-South Carolina | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Tennessee | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
-Texas | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Virginia | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
Oceania |
|||||||
Australia | Present | Introduced | Present based on regional records | ||||
-New South Wales | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Northern Territory | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Queensland | Present | Introduced | |||||
-South Australia | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Western Australia | Present | Introduced | |||||
Federated States of Micronesia | Present | Introduced | Caroline Islands - Faraulep, Ifalik, Satawal, Woleai; Mortlock Islands - Satawan; Yap Islands - Yap; Original citation: Wagner et al. (2016) | ||||
French Polynesia | Present | Marquesas, cultivated | |||||
Guam | Present | Introduced | Original citation: Wagner et al. (2016) | ||||
New Zealand | Present | Introduced | Casual alien, weed | ||||
Northern Mariana Islands | Present | Introduced | Invasive | ||||
South America |
|||||||
Argentina | Present | Introduced | |||||
Bolivia | Present | Introduced | Adventitious | ||||
Brazil | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
-Acre | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Alagoas | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Amapa | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Bahia | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Ceara | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Espirito Santo | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Goias | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Maranhao | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Mato Grosso | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Mato Grosso do Sul | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Minas Gerais | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Para | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Paraiba | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Parana | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Pernambuco | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Piaui | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Rio de Janeiro | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Rio Grande do Norte | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Rio Grande do Sul | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Rondonia | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Roraima | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Santa Catarina | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Sao Paulo | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Sergipe | Present | Introduced | |||||
-Tocantins | Present | Introduced | |||||
Chile | Present | Introduced | Naturalized | Naturalized | |||
Colombia | Present | Native | |||||
Ecuador | Present | Native | |||||
Paraguay | Present | Introduced | Invasive | Adventive, cultivation escape; Original citation: Paraguay Checklist (2016) | |||
Peru | Present | Native | Original citation: Peru Checklist (2016) | ||||
Venezuela | Present | Introduced | Invasive |
History of Introduction and Spread
Top of pageC. sulphureus is likely to have been introduced to the Caribbean from the mainland at an early date, and herbarium specimen records indicate that the species had escaped cultivation by 1886 in Puerto Rico, 1927 in Haiti, 1945 in Dominican Republic and 1909 in Cuba (US National Herbarium). The species was being cultivated in flower gardens in Bermuda by 1918 (Britton, 1918), in Virgin Islands gardens by 1925 (Britton and Wilson, 1924), and in Dominica by 1985 (Nicolson et al., 1991). It is now a common roadside weed in Puerto Rico (Liogier and Martorell, 2000) and is present in various other parts of the Caribbean including Cuba, Hispaniola, and the US and British Virgin Islands (Acevedo-Rodríguez and Strong, 2012; USDA-ARS, 2016).
In Europe, C. sulphureus was transported to Spain via the galleons and grown in botanical gardens (Sherff, 1932; Staples and Herbst, 2005). According to Burkill (1930), C. sulphureus has remained in cultivation in Europe since it was first described by Cavanilles in 1791 (based on a plant cultivated in the Real Jardin Botanico de Madrid) and is widely available in the horticultural trade. Today, the species is also reported as a roadside and ruderal weed in other parts of Europe, notably in Belgium and Poland (USDA-ARS, 2016).
In Africa, the species was introduced into the high eastern plains of South Africa by way of contaminated horse feed imported from Mexico during the Boer War in 1902. It is now reportedly naturalized in parts of eastern and southern Africa, including not only South Africa but Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi and Zimbabwe (USDA-ARS, 2016). In Swaziland it is suspected to be a minor problem species with invasive potential (Swaziland National Trust Commission, 2016).
In Asia-Pacific, the species is thought to have reached the Philippines directly from Mexico via the galleon trade during the second half of the nineteenth century, toward the end of the Spanish colonial period (Merrill, 1904). It has been suggested that C. sulphureus was brought to the Philippines at a later date than its close relative C. caudatus, as C. sulphureus was probably introduced simply for ornamental purposes whereas C. caudatus was used as a vegetable on board the galleons (Merrill, 1923; Burkill, 1930). It was present in Guam by the 1910s, as specimens were collected from the US Guam Experiment Station (US National Herbarium). Similarly, the species has been present in the Marquesas Islands since 1929 (US National Herbarium; Wagner and Lorence, 2016). In the south of mainland Asia, C. sulphureus found its way to India by 1845 (Voigt, 1845) and by 1930 had “run wild” in places “very remote from European stations” (Burkill, 1930).
Risk of Introduction
Top of pageThe risk of introduction of C. sulphureus is high. It received a ‘high risk’ score of 9.0 from a Hawaii risk assessment (PlantPono, 2014). Invasive traits include its widespread use as an ornamental plant and repeated intentional introductions by humans, its ability to seed freely, self-compatibility, tolerance of tropical climates and its ability to thrive in a variety of soil types. Based on these traits, the fact that it has been reported as a weed in places beyond its native range, and considering that other members of the Cosmos genus are also known to be weeds, the risk of introduction for this species is high, particularly in places where it continues to be popular in cultivation.
Habitat
Top of pageC. sulphureus prefers meadows and open shrubland. It is a common weed in disturbed areas, pastures, roadsides, railroads, along rivers, grassland, sometimes in disturbed forest sites. It grows, in Colombia for example, in humid premontane and humid tropical forests as well as in rainforests, such as in the lowlands of Bolivia (Bolivia Catalogue, 2016; Vascular Plants of Antioquia, 2016). It can also be found in low coastal regions, as in Ecuador (Vascular Plants of Ecuador, 2016). It occurs from about 80 to 3000 m above sea level.
Habitat List
Top of pageCategory | Sub-Category | Habitat | Presence | Status |
---|---|---|---|---|
Terrestrial | Managed | Cultivated / agricultural land | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Cultivated / agricultural land | Principal habitat | Productive/non-natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Protected agriculture (e.g. glasshouse production) | Principal habitat | Productive/non-natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Managed grasslands (grazing systems) | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Industrial / intensive livestock production systems | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Disturbed areas | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Rail / roadsides | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Managed | Urban / peri-urban areas | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Natural / Semi-natural | Natural grasslands | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Natural / Semi-natural | Riverbanks | Principal habitat | Natural |
Terrestrial | Natural / Semi-natural | Scrub / shrublands | Principal habitat | Natural |
Littoral | Coastal areas | Principal habitat | Natural | |
Littoral | Coastal dunes | Principal habitat | Natural |
Biology and Ecology
Top of pageGenetics
C. sulphureus is diploid with a chromosome number of 2n = 24 (Kumari and Sidhu, 2012) as are most other species in the genus, excluding C. caudatus, which is tetraploid.
Reproductive biology
Flowers of C. sulphureus are pollinated by Hymenoptera (bees) and Lepidoptera (butterflies). The species is self-compatible and seeds freely (PlantPono, 2014; Missouri Botanical Garden, 2017).
Physiology and phenology
C. sulphureus is an annual herb and, under favourable environmental conditions, produces flowers and seeds in spring and summer months.
Environmental requirements
C. sulphureus needs full sunlight and moderate water availability to grow.
Climate
Top of pageClimate | Status | Description | Remark |
---|---|---|---|
Am - Tropical monsoon climate | Preferred | Tropical monsoon climate ( < 60mm precipitation driest month but > (100 - [total annual precipitation(mm}/25])) | |
As - Tropical savanna climate with dry summer | Preferred | < 60mm precipitation driest month (in summer) and < (100 - [total annual precipitation{mm}/25]) | |
Aw - Tropical wet and dry savanna climate | Preferred | < 60mm precipitation driest month (in winter) and < (100 - [total annual precipitation{mm}/25]) | |
Cs - Warm temperate climate with dry summer | Preferred | Warm average temp. > 10°C, Cold average temp. > 0°C, dry summers | |
Ds - Continental climate with dry summer | Preferred | Continental climate with dry summer (Warm average temp. > 10°C, coldest month < 0°C, dry summers) |
Latitude/Altitude Ranges
Top of pageLatitude North (°N) | Latitude South (°S) | Altitude Lower (m) | Altitude Upper (m) |
---|---|---|---|
42 | 24 | 80 | 3000 |
Soil Tolerances
Top of pageSoil reaction
- alkaline
- neutral
Soil texture
- light
- medium
Special soil tolerances
- shallow
Means of Movement and Dispersal
Top of pageVector transmission (biotic)
C. sulphureus seeds are carried externally by animals and dropped locally. The fruits, with a scabrid beak and pappus of two horizontally spreading awns, are adapted for attachment and animal dispersal, but are not adapted for wind dispersal (Jansen, 2005; PlantPono, 2014).
Intentional introduction
C. sulphureus has been introduced widely as an ornamental plant.
Pathway Causes
Top of pageCause | Notes | Long Distance | Local | References |
---|---|---|---|---|
Botanical gardens and zoos | Mexican seed is known to have been introduced to, and cultivated in, botanical gardens in Spain and the Philippines | Yes | Yes | Cavanilles (1791); Merrill (1904); Merrill (1923); Burkill (1930) |
Cut flower trade | Yes | |||
Disturbance | Yes | |||
Escape from confinement or garden escape | Known to have escaped cultivation in Panama, Paraguay, Florida and other parts of the Caribbean and South America | Yes | Yes | Liogier and Martorell (2000); Flora of Panama (2016); Paraguay Checklist (2016) |
Hitchhiker | Seeds are adapted for external attachment and animal dispersal | Yes | Jansen (2005); PlantPono (2014) | |
Horticulture | Cultivated in gardens | Yes | Liogier and Martorell (2000); Randall (2012) | |
Internet sales | Yes | Yes | Jansen (2005) | |
Medicinal use | Used in China and Brazil in traditional medicine | Yes | Botsaris (2007) | |
Nursery trade | Yes | Yes | Jansen (2005) | |
Ornamental purposes | Yes | Yes | Kress et al. (2003); Jansen (2005) | |
Seed trade | Yes | Yes | Kress et al. (2003); Jansen (2005) |
Pathway Vectors
Top of pageVector | Notes | Long Distance | Local | References |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aircraft | Yes | |||
Clothing, footwear and possessions | Seeds are adapted for external attachment and animal dispersal | Yes | Jansen (2005); PlantPono (2014) | |
Debris and waste associated with human activities | Known to have escaped cultivation in Panama, Paraguay, Florida and other parts of the Caribbean and South America | Yes | Yes | Liogier and Martorell (2000); Flora of Panama (2016); Paraguay Checklist (2016) |
Floating vegetation and debris | Dispersal by water debris is possible as species grows along riverbanks and coastal areas | Yes | Vascular Plants of Ecuador (2016) | |
Yes | Yes | Jansen (2005) | ||
Land vehicles | Dispersal by vehicles is possible as species is commonly found on roadsides | Yes | Yes | Liogier and Martorell (2000) |
Water | Dispersal by water is possible as species grows along riverbanks and coastal areas | Yes | Vascular Plants of Ecuador (2016) |
Risk and Impact Factors
Top of page- Proved invasive outside its native range
- Has a broad native range
- Abundant in its native range
- Is a habitat generalist
- Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc
- Pioneering in disturbed areas
- Highly mobile locally
- Fast growing
- Has high reproductive potential
- Gregarious
- Has propagules that can remain viable for more than one year
- Has high genetic variability
- Ecosystem change/ habitat alteration
- Reduced native biodiversity
- Threat to/ loss of native species
- Highly likely to be transported internationally accidentally
- Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately
Uses
Top of pageThis species has been used in its native Mexico and Central and South Americas since pre-Colombian times. The flower heads of C. sulphureus, as well as those of other Cosmos species, were used as a popular yellow dye by European settlers for domestic textile production in southern Africa, and today the practice continues as a hobby or for textile crafts, to dye wool bright yellow or orange (Jansen, 2005). C. sulphureus is also commonly cultivated in tropical and temperate regions as an ornamental (P Acevedo-Rodríguez, Smithsonian Institution, USA, personal observation, 2016). In China, the species has been used in traditional medicine for centuries due to its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antifungal properties as well as for the treatment of gastric ulcers, liver inflammation and arthritis (Quattrocchi, 2012). In Brazil, it has been recorded as an antimalarial medicinal plant requiring further research (Botsaris, 2007).
Uses List
Top of pageGeneral
- Botanical garden/zoo
Human food and beverage
- Vegetable
Materials
- Dyestuffs
- Tanstuffs
Medicinal, pharmaceutical
- Source of medicine/pharmaceutical
- Traditional/folklore
Ornamental
- Potted plant
- Seed trade
Similarities to Other Species/Conditions
Top of pageThe leaves of C. sulphureus look similar to those of C. caudatus. However, C. sulphureus typically has bright yellow-orange ray florets, distinct from the pink to pale purple rays of C. caudatus. Additionally, C. sulphureus has larger rays, smaller achenes, and filaments inserted lower in the corolla tube. The typical form has eight ray florets but some cultivars have more.
Flora of Missouri (2016) reports: “Sherff (1955) separated native Latin American populations of this species into three varieties, based on minor differences in pubescence and persistence of the pappus. The introduced Missouri plants appear to represent var. sulphureus (with nearly glabrous stems and mostly persistent pappus) if these taxa are accepted. However, the variability of plants in nature and the effects of plant breeding on the cultivated races has obscured the supposed differences among the varieties, making it imprudent to attempt their formal taxonomic recognition.”
Gaps in Knowledge/Research Needs
Top of pageDespite being recorded as an invasive species in a number of countries around the world, there is very limited information available about its environmental impact. As a result, further research is needed on the invasive potential of this species, its current and potential environmental impact, effective methods of monitoring and any necessary methods of prevention and control. This is especially important considering that the species is a popular ornamental, possesses invasive traits and other members of the genus also have invasive potential.
References
Top of pageAcevedo-Rodríguez P, Strong MT, 2012. Catalogue of the seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany, 98:1192 pp. Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution. http://botany.si.edu/Antilles/WestIndies/catalog.htm
Bailey LH, 1924. Manual of cultivated plants: a flora for the identification of the most common or significant species of plants grown in the continental United States and Canada for food, ornament, utility, and general interest, both in the open and under glass. New York, USA: The Macmillan Company, 851 pp. https://archive.org/details/manualofcultiva00bail.
Balick MJ, Nee MH, Atha DE, 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize, with common names and uses. Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden 85. New York, USA: The New York Botanical Garden Press, 246 pp
Beentje HJ, Hind DJN, 2005. Cosmos. In: Beentje HJ, Jeffrey C, Hind DJN, eds. Flora of Tropical East Africa. Compositae (Part 3). Richmond, UK: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Bolivia Catalogue, 2016. Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Bolivia. St. Louis, Missouri, USA and Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard University Herbaria. http://tropicos.org/Project/BC
Brako L, Zarucchi JL, 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru, 1286 pp.
Britton NL, 1918. The Flora of the American Virgin Islands. Contributions from the New York Botanical Gardens Issue 203. New York, USA: New York Botanical Garden, 100 pp. http://books.google.com/books?id=EJMYAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Burkill IH, 1930. Cosmos in the East. The Gardens’ Bulletin, Straits Settlements (Singapore Botanic Garden), 5(2):118-120
Cavanilles AJ, 1791. Icones et descriptiones plantarum
Chen Y, Hind DJN, 2011. Heliantheae. In: Wu ZY, Raven PH, Hong DY, eds. Flora of China, Volume 20-21 (Asteraceae). Beijing, China: Science Press and St. Louis, USA: Missouri Garden Press, 852-878
Chong KY, Tan HTW, Corlett RT, 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native naturalised and cultivated species. Singapore: Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore, 273 pp. https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2017/04/flora_of_singapore_tc.pdf
Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria, 2014. Australasian Virtual Herbarium. Australia: Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria. http://avh.chah.org.au
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Grierson AJC, 1980. Compositae. In: Dassanayake MD, Fosberg FR, eds. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon
Jansen PCM, 2005. Cosmos sulphureus Cav. In: Jansen PCM, Cardon D, eds. Plant Resources of Tropical Africa (PROTA) 3, Dyes and Tannins. Wageningen, Netherlands: PROTA Foundation/CTA and Leiden, Netherlands: Backhuys Publishers, 61-62
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Kress WJ, DeFilipps RA, Farr E, Kyi DYY, 2003. A checklist of the trees, shrubs, herbs, and climbers of Myanmar. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, 590 pp. http://botany.si.edu/myanmar/checklistNames.cfm
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Melchert TE, 1976. Melchert TE, 1976. Cosmos. In: Nash DL, Williams LO. Flora of Guatemala Volume 24, Part XII. Chicago, USA: Field Museum of Natural History, 229-234
Merrill ED, 1904. New or noteworthy Philippine plants: II. The American element in the Philippine flora. Manila, Philippines: Bureau of Public Printing
Merrill ED, 1923. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, Bureau of Printing.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 2017. Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder. St. Louis, MO, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/plantfinder/plantfindersearch.aspx
Mondin CA, 2014. Cosmos in lista de espécies da flora do Brasil. Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. http://floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br/
Paraguay Checklist, 2016. Paraguay Checklist. St. Louis, Missouri, USA and Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard University Herbaria. http://tropicos.org/Project/Paraguay
Peru Checklist, 2016. Peru Checklist. St. Louis, Missouri, USA and Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard University Herbaria. http://tropicos.org/Project/PEC
PlantPono, 2014. Hawaii-Pacific Weed Risk Assessment (HPWRA) for Cosmos sulphureus. Hawaii, USA: Coordinating Group on Alien Pest Species (CGAPS), Hawai‘i Invasive Species Council and the Hawai‘i Biological Information Network. http://plantpono.org/hpwra.php
Pruski JF, 1997. Asteraceae. In: Steyermark JA, Berry PE, Holst BK, eds. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. St. Louis, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden
Randall RP, 2012. A Global Compendium of Weeds. Perth, Australia: Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia, 1124 pp. http://www.cabi.org/isc/FullTextPDF/2013/20133109119.pdf
Robinson H, 2006. 190(6) Compositae-Heliantheae Part 1: Introduction, genera A-L. In: Harling G, Anderson L, eds. Flora of Ecuador 77(1). Gothenburg, Sweden: Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, 467 pp
Sherff EE, 1932. Revision of the genus Cosmos (Family Compositae). Field Museum of Natural History, Botany, 8: 399-488
Smith AW, 1972. A gardener’s dictionary of plant names: a handbook on the origin and meaning of some plant names. London, UK: Cassell and Co, 391 pp
Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council, 1999. Invasive exotic pest plants in Tennessee. Tennessee, USA: Research Committee of the Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council. https://plants.usda.gov/java/invasiveOne?pubID=SEEPPC&sort=origin&format=Print
Staples GW, Herbst DR, 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian islands and other tropical places. Honolulu, Hawaii: Bishop Museum Press, 908 pp
Stevens PF, 2012. Angiosperm phylogeny website. http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/
Strother PF, 1999. Flora of Chaipas: Part 5 Compositae-Heliantheae s.l. California, USA: California Academy of Sciences, 232 pp
Swaziland National Trust Commission, 2016. Swaziland’s flora database. Mbabane, Swaziland: Swaziland National Museum. http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora/index.asp
USDA-ARS, 2016. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online Database. Beltsville, USA: US Department of Agriculture National Germplasm Resources Laboratory. http://www.ars-grin.gov/
USDA-NRCS, 2016. The PLANTS Database. Baton Rouge, USA: National Plant Data Center. http://plants.usda.gov/
Vascular Plants of Antioquia, 2016. Catalogue of the vascular plants of the department of Antioquia (Colombia), Tropicos website. St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://www.tropicos.org/Project/CV
Vascular Plants of Ecuador, 2016. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador, St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://tropicos.org/Project/CE
Villaseñor Ríos JL, Espinosa García FJ, 1998. Catálogo de malezas de México [Catalogue of Mexican Weeds]. Mexico City, Mexico: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 449 pp
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Wagner W L, Lorence D H, 2016. Flora of the Marquesas Islands website. Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution. http://botany.si.edu/pacificislandbiodiversity/marquesasflora/index.htm
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Distribution References
Balick MJ, Nee MH, Atha DE, 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize, with common names and uses. In: Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden, 85 New York, USA: The New York Botanical Garden Press. 246 pp.
Beentje HJ, Hind DJN, 2005. Cosmos. In: Flora of Tropical East Africa. Compositae (Part 3), [ed. by Beentje HJ, Jeffrey C, Hind DJN]. Richmond, UK: Royal Botanic Garden, Kew.
Bolivia Catalogue, 2016. Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Bolivia., St. Louis, Missouri; Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard University Herbaria. http://tropicos.org/Project/BC
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Britton NL, 1918. The Flora of the American Virgin Islands. In: Contributions from the New York Botanical Gardens, New York, USA: New York Botanical Garden, 100. 100 pp. http://books.google.com/books?id=EJMYAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
CABI, Undated. Compendium record. Wallingford, UK: CABI
CABI, Undated a. CABI Compendium: Status inferred from regional distribution. Wallingford, UK: CABI
CABI, Undated b. CABI Compendium: Status as determined by CABI editor. Wallingford, UK: CABI
Chen Y, Hind DJN, 2011. Heliantheae. In: Flora of China, Volume 20-21 (Asteraceae), [ed. by Wu ZY, Raven PH, Hong DY]. Beijing; St. Louis, China; USA: Science Press and Missouri Garden Press. 852-878.
Chong KY, Tan HTW, Corlett RT, 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native naturalised and cultivated species., Singapore: Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. 273 pp. https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2017/04/flora_of_singapore_tc.pdf
Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria, 2014. Australasian Virtual Herbarium., Australia: Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria. http://avh.chah.org.au
Flora of Missouri, 2016. Flora of Missouri., St. Louis, Missouri; Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard. http://tropicos.org/Project/MO
Flora of Panama, 2016. Flora of Panama., St. Louis, Missouri; Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden and Harvard University Herbaria. http://www.tropicos.org/Project/FOPWFO
FloraBase, 2016. FloraBase - the Western Australian Flora., Australia: Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au
GBIF, 2014. Global Biodiversity Information Facility. http://www.gbif.org/species
Grierson AJC, 1980. Compositae. In: A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon, [ed. by Dassanayake MD, Fosberg FR].
Jansen PCM, 2005. Cosmos sulphureus Cav. In: Plant Resources of Tropical Africa (PROTA) 3, Dyes and Tannins, [ed. by Jansen PCM, Cardon D]. Wageningen; Leiden, Netherlands: PROTA Foundation/CTA, Backhuys Publishers. 61-62.
Jepson Flora Project, 2018. (Jepson eFlora)., Berkeley, California, USA: University of California. http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/jepson_flora_project.htm
Kress WJ, DeFilipps RA, Farr E, Kyi DYY, 2003. A checklist of the trees, shrubs, herbs, and climbers of Myanmar. In: Contributions from the United States National Herbarium, Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press. 590 pp. http://botany.si.edu/myanmar/checklistNames.cfm
Liogier HA, Martorell LF, 2000. Flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands: a systematic synopsis., San Juan, Puerto Rico: La Editorial, University of Puerto Rico. 382 pp.
Melchert TE, 1976. Cosmos. In: Flora of Guatemala, 24 (XII) [ed. by Nash DL]. Chicago, USA: Field Museum of Natural History. 229-234.
Merrill ED, 1904. New or noteworthy Philippine plants: II. The American element in the Philippine flora., Manila, Philippines: Bureau of Public Print.
Missouri Botanical Garden, 2016. Tropicos database., St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://tropicos.org
Mondin CA, 2014. (Cosmos in lista de espécies da flora do Brasil)., Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. http://floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br/
Pruski JF, 1997. Asteraceae. In: Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana, [ed. by Steyermark JA, Berry PE, Holst BK]. St. Louis, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden.
Randall RP, 2012. A Global Compendium of Weeds., Perth, Australia: Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia. 1124 pp. http://www.cabi.org/isc/FullTextPDF/2013/20133109119.pdf
Robinson H, 2006. Compositae-Heliantheae Part 1: Introduction, genera A-L. In: Flora of Ecuador, 77 (1) [ed. by Harling G, Anderson L]. Gothenburg, Sweden: Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, 467. 467 pp.
Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council, 1999. Invasive exotic pest plants in Tennessee., Tennessee, USA: Research Committee of the Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council. https://plants.usda.gov/java/invasiveOne?pubID=SEEPPC&sort=origin&format=Print
Swaziland National Trust Commission, 2016. Swaziland's flora database., Mbabane, Swaziland: Swaziland National Museum. http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora/index.asp
USDA-ARS, 2016. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online Database. Beltsville, Maryland, USA: National Germplasm Resources Laboratory. https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomysimple.aspx
USDA-NRCS, 2016. The PLANTS Database. Greensboro, North Carolina, USA: National Plant Data Team. https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov
Vascular Plants of Antioquia, 2016. Catalogue of the vascular plants of the department of Antioquia (Colombia), Tropicos website., St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://www.tropicos.org/Project/CV
Vascular Plants of Ecuador, 2016. Catalogue of the Vascular Plants of Ecuador., St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. http://tropicos.org/Project/CE
Wagner WL, Lorence DH, 2016. Flora of the Marquesas Islands website., Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution. http://botany.si.edu/pacificislandbiodiversity/marquesasflora/index.htm
Contributors
Top of page27/03/17 Original text by:
Christopher F Puttock, Department of Botany-Smithsonian NMNH, Washington DC, USA
Edits by:
Marianne Jennifer Datiles, Department of Botany-Smithsonian NMNH, Washington DC, USA
Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, Department of Botany-Smithsonian NMNH, Washington DC, USA
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