pappus

A modified calyx, composed of scales, bristles, or featherlike hairs, in plants of the composite family, such as the dandelion and the thistle.

Down, as that on the seeds of some plants.

The hairy or feathery appendage of the achenes of thistles, dandelions, and most other plants of the order Compositæ; also, the scales, awns, or bristles which represent the calyx in other plants of the same order.

The markedly reduced sepals of an Asteraceae floret that take the form of trichomes or scale attached to the ovary or seed.

calyx composed of scales or bristles or featherlike hairs in plants of the Compositae such as thistles and dandelions