Hieracium maculatum (spotted hawkweed, "Uzurabatanpopo")

Japanese name: ウズラバタンポポ （鶉葉蒲公英）
Scientific name: Hieracium maculatum

[Overview]
A perennial reaching 60 cm in height.
The whole plant is covered with white hairs.
The leaves consist of basal leaves and alternate leaves clustered near the base of the stem.
The basal leaves have long petioles and are elliptic with a somewhat pointed tip, 5–25 cm long including the petiole, with teeth.
The leaves on the stem are pointed at the tip.
The upper surface of the leaves is hairless, while soft long hairs grow on the petiole and on the veins of the underside.
The leaves have blackish-purple spots.
A long flower stalk branches, and each branch tip bears a single yellow flower head 3–4 cm across.
The flower stalk and involucral bracts are densely covered with glandular hairs with black mottling.
The fruit is an achene with a white pappus.

[History]
It is a naturalized plant that was confirmed in Yokohama, Kanagawa in 1999.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed.
It prefers sun to partial shade, good ventilation and well-drained soil.
For potted plants, in spring and autumn water thoroughly when the soil surface dries, keep it on the dry side in summer to help it through the season, and in winter water just enough that the soil does not dry out completely.
For plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
Little fertilizer is needed; for potted plants, a small amount of slow-release fertilizer may be placed on the soil in early spring.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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