# Yareta > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Yareta > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Yareta.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yareta > Source revision: 1350801166 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|Species of plant}} __NOTOC__{{Speciesbox |image = LLareta (Azorella compacte phil.).jpg |image_caption = in [Lauca National Park](/source/Lauca_National_Park), [Chile](/source/Chile) |genus = Azorella |species = compacta |authority = [Phil.](/source/Rodolfo_Armando_Philippi) }} '''Yareta''' or '''llareta''' (in Spanish), known scientifically as '''''Azorella compacta''''', (historically '''''Azorella yareta''''') is a velvety, chartreuse [cushion plant](/source/cushion_plant) in the family [Apiaceae](/source/Apiaceae) which is native to [South America](/source/South_America). It grows in the [Puna grassland](/source/Puna_grassland)s of the [Andes](/source/Andes) in [Peru](/source/Peru), [Bolivia](/source/Bolivia), northern [Chile](/source/Chile) and western [Argentina](/source/Argentina) at altitudes between {{convert|3200|and|5250|m|ft}}.{{cite web |title=Image of Azorella compacta |url=http://www.chileflora.com/Florachilena/FloraEnglish/HighResPages/EH2013.htm |publisher=chileflora |access-date=28 October 2015}}{{cite journal |last1=Kleier |first1=Catherine |last2=Rundel |first2=Philip W. |title=Microsite requirements, population structure and growth of the cushion plant Azorella compacta in the tropical Chilean Andes |journal=Austral Ecology |date=August 2004 |volume=29 |issue=4 |pages=461–470 |doi=10.1111/j.1442-9993.2004.01386.x|bibcode=2004AusEc..29..461K }} The name comes from ''yarita'' in the [Quechua language](/source/Quechuan_languages). ==Description== thumb|left|250px|Distribution of flowersYareta is an [evergreen](/source/evergreen) perennial with a low, mat-like shape and hemispherical growth form that grows to around {{convert|6|m|ft|abbr=on}} in diameter.{{cite journal |last1=Pugnaire |first1=Francisco I. |last2=Morillo |first2=José A. |last3=Rodríguez-Echeverría |first3=Susana |last4=Gaxiola |first4=Aurora |title=Azorella compacta : survival champions in extreme, high-elevation environments |journal=Ecosphere |date=February 2020 |volume=11 |issue=2 |doi=10.1002/ecs2.3031 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2020Ecosp..11E3031P }} The [self-fertile](/source/self-fertile), pink or lavender flowers are [hermaphroditic](/source/Hermaphrodite) and are primarily pollinated by small flies, bees, wasps, and moths.{{Cite journal |last1=López-Sepúlveda |first1=Patricio |last2=Takayama |first2=Koji |last3=Greimler |first3=Josef |last4=Crawford |first4=Daniel J. |last5=Peñailillo |first5=Patricio |last6=Baeza |first6=Marcelo |last7=Ruiz |first7=Eduardo |last8=Kohl |first8=Gudrun |last9=Tremetsberger |first9=Karin |last10=Gatica |first10=Alejandro |last11=Letelier |first11=Luis |last12=Novoa |first12=Patricio |last13=Novak |first13=Johannes |last14=Stuessy |first14=Tod F. |date=2014-10-08 |title=Progressive migration and anagenesis in Drimys confertifolia of the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10265-014-0666-7 |journal=Journal of Plant Research |volume=128 |issue=1 |pages=73–90 |doi=10.1007/s10265-014-0666-7 |pmid=25292282 |pmc=4300435 |issn=0918-9440}} The plant prefers sandy, well-drained soils. It can grow in nutritionally poor soils that are acidic, neutral or basic (alkaline) at altitudes of up to {{convert|5200|m|feet}}. Yareta is well-adapted to high [insolation](/source/insolation) rates typical of the Andes highlands and cannot grow in shade. The plant's leaves grow into an extremely compact, dense mat that reduces heat and water loss.{{cite journal |last1=Wickens |first1=G. E. |title=Llareta (Azorella Compacta, Umbelliferae): A review |journal=Economic Botany |date=April 1995 |volume=49 |issue=2 |pages=207–212 |doi=10.1007/BF02862926 |bibcode=1995EcBot..49..207W |s2cid=37079723 |language=en |issn=0013-0001}} This mat grows near the ground where air temperature is one or two degrees Celsius higher than the mean air temperature. This temperature difference is a result of the longwave radiation re-radiated by the soil surface, which is usually dark gray to black in the Puna. Yareta is estimated to grow approximately {{convert|1.5|cm|inch}} per year. Many yaretas are estimated to be over 3,000 years old.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/oldest-living-things/index.html|title=The oldest living things on Earth|first=Richard |last=Stenger|date=2019-11-28|website=CNN Travel|language=en|access-date=2020-01-09}} These oldest ones have been reported to grow as slowly as {{convert|1/18|in|mm|sp=us|abbr=off}} per year.{{cite journal |last=Ralph |first=Carol P. |date=March 1978 |title=Observations on Azorella compacta (Umbelliferae) |journal=Biotropica |volume=10 |issue=1 |page= 62 plus photo p. 63 |doi=10.2307/2388107 |jstor= 2388107 }} Its very slow growth makes the traditional practice of harvesting it for fuel highly unsustainable.{{Cite web |url=https://www.newscientist.com/gallery/oldest-things/3 |title=See the world's oldest organisms}}{{clear left}} ==Gallery== File:Yareta 2.jpg|Plant in crevice in [Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve](/source/Eduardo_Avaroa_Andean_Fauna_National_Reserve), [Potosí, Bolivia](/source/Potos%C3%AD%2C_Bolivia) File:Azorella compacta (8427860829).jpg|Close-up showing seeds File:Azorella compacta (yareta) en la Isla H, Ushuaia, Argentina.JPG|Texture of surface File:Yareta DSCN6066mod.jpg|Flowers ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== *{{Commons category-inline|Azorella compacta}} *[http://www.chilebosque.cl/shrb/acomp.html ''Azorella compacta'' pictures from Chile] {{Taxonbar|from=Q551995}} Category:Azorella Category:Flora of the Andes Category:Flora of Argentina Category:Flora of Bolivia Category:Flora of northern Chile Category:Flora of Peru --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Yareta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yareta) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yareta?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.