Blepharizonia plumosa

Big tarplant

Family: Asteraceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Big tarplant is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native annual found in northwestern San Joaquin Valley and eastern San Francisco Bay Area in dry grassland slopes at elevations below 500 meters. Flowering from July to November, this plant produces yellow flowers in distinctive involucres that are grayish-white and covered with tiny tack-shaped glands. Growing with upright stems 20 to 60 centimeters tall, it forms an open, branching habit typical of annual grassland species. Its leaves are deeply divided with narrow, feather-like segments that give the plant a delicate, soft appearance. The fruit is small and adapted to wind dispersal across its dry, open habitat.

Habitat: dry slopes in grassland

Bloom period: Jul-Nov

Elevation: < 500 m

Bioregions: nw SnJV, e SnFrB.

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