Baileya multiradiata

Desert marigold

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Desert marigold is a California native perennial found in southern Colorado Desert and desert regions at elevations below 1,600 meters. Flowering from April to July and October, this plant produces bright yellow ray flowers up to 20 millimeters long in showy heads 10 to 25 millimeters wide. Growing with canescent-tomentose stems 20 to 50 centimeters tall that are generally branched only at the base, it has a distinctive sprawling form. Its mostly basal leaves are 2 to 10 centimeters long with pinnately divided blades, featuring linear to ovate lobes on winged petioles. The plant produces numerous ray flowers in dense, hemispheric flower heads with prominent yellow petals.

Habitat: Desert roadsides, flats, washes, hillsides

Bloom period: Apr-Jul, Oct

Elevation: < 1600 m

Bioregions: SCoRO (waif), D

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.