Encelia farinosa var. farinosa

Family: Asteraceae · Type: shrub · Native

brittlebush is a California native shrub found in coastal scrub and stony desert hillsides at elevations below 1,500 meters. Flowering from January to June and August to September, this plant produces yellow to orange flowers with orange anthers. Growing as a shrub 0.5 to 2 meters tall with multiple branching stems, it develops a distinctive whitish-gray appearance. Its leaves are gray-green, typically oblong to ovate, with a soft, fuzzy texture that helps the plant retain moisture in dry environments. The shrub forms dense, rounded clusters that provide important habitat and visual texture in desert and coastal landscapes.

Habitat: Coastal scrub, stony desert hillsides

Bloom period: Jan-Jun, Aug--Sep

Elevation: < 1500 m

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