Berkheya is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. It is distributed in tropical Africa, especially in southern regions. Of about 75 species, 71 can be found in South Africa.
Most species have yellow ray florets, a few have white, and B. purpurea has light purple or mauve florets.
Berkheya purpurea is cultivated as an ornamental plant. Some Berkheya are known as weeds.
Berkheya coddii is a well-known hyperaccumulator. Concentration of Ni as the leaves of this species may reach 7.6% DW Ni.
The genus was named in honor of the Dutch scientist and artist Johannes le Francq van Berkhey.
Berkheya are associated with a variety of weevils in the genus Larinus. The tephritid fruit fly Urophora agromyzella is also found on the plants.
Species
Species include:
Berkheya acanthopoda
Berkheya angusta
Berkheya angustifolia
Berkheya annectens – thistle-thorn
Berkheya armata
Berkheya barbata
Berkheya bergiana
Berkheya bipinnatifida
Berkheya caffra
Berkheya canescens
Berkheya cardopatifolia
Berkheya carduoides
Berkheya carlinifolia
Berkheya carlinoides
Berkheya carlinopsis
Berkheya chamaepeuce
Berkheya cirsiifolia
Berkheya coddii
Berkheya coriacea
Berkheya cruciata
Berkheya cuneata
Berkheya debilis
Berkheya decurrens
Berkheya densifolia
Berkheya discolor
Berkheya draco
Berkheya dregei
Berkheya echinacea
Berkheya eriobasis
Berkheya erysithales
Berkheya ferox
Berkheya francisci
Berkheya fruticosa
Berkheya glabrata – yellow thistle
Berkheya griquana
Berkheya herbacea
Berkheya heterophylla
Berkheya insignis
Berkheya latifolia
Berkheya leucaugeta
Berkheya mackenii
Berkheya macrocephala
Berkheya maritima
Berkheya montana
Berkheya multijuga
Berkheya nivea
Berkheya onobromoides
Berkheya onopordifolia
Berkheya pannosa
Berkheya pauciflora
Berkheya pinnatifida
Berkheya purpurea – purple berkheya
Berkheya radula
Berkheya radyeri
Berkheya rhapontica
Berkheya rigida – Augusta thistle, Hamelin thistle
Berkheya robusta
Berkheya rosulata
Berkheya seminivea
Berkheya setifera
Berkheya speciosa
Berkheya sphaerocephala
Berkheya spinosa
Berkheya spinosissima
Berkheya subulata
Berkheya tysonii
Berkheya umbellata
Berkheya viscosa
Berkheya zeyheri
Phylogeny
Comparison of DNA has indicated that Berkheya in its current composition is paraphyletic because some of its species are more related to Cullumia, Cuspidia, Didelta and Heterorhachis than all species currently recognised as Berkeya among each other.