Centromadia pungens

Common spikeweed

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Common spikeweed is a California native perennial found in grasslands and disturbed areas across central and southern California at elevations of 0 to 1,000 meters. Flowering from May to November, this plant produces yellow flowers in heads 3 to 6 millimeters long with yellow to brown-tinged anthers. Growing with erect, branching stems 10 to 120 centimeters tall, it develops a robust and widely spreading habit. Its leaves are distinctively bristly-ciliate, especially near the base, with rough surfaces that often feature a bristly midrib. The plant forms dense clusters with multiple stems, creating a distinctive texture in its native grassland habitats.

California counties: San Luis Obispo, Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano, San Joaquin, Butte, Fresno, Sutter, Lassen, San Diego, San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Siskiyou, Tulare, San Mateo, Riverside, San Benito, Kings, Yolo, Santa Clara, Colusa, Glenn, Merced, Sacramento, Marin, Placer, Stanislaus, Santa Cruz, Madera, Santa Barbara

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