Geraea canescens

Desert-sunflower

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Desert-sunflower is a California native perennial found in the Mojave Desert bioregion in sandy desert soils at elevations below 1,300 meters. Flowering from January to May and September to November, this plant produces yellow ray flowers 1 to 2 centimeters long with distinctive radiate heads. Growing with stems 10 to 80 centimeters tall that are simple to openly branched and covered in soft bristly hairs, it develops a robust desert form. Its leaves range from 1 to 10 centimeters long, with lanceolate to ovate blades that are acute and often slightly hairy. The fruit develops small awns 3 to 4 millimeters long, characteristic of its sunflower family heritage.

Habitat: Sandy desert soils

Bloom period: Jan-May, Sep--Nov

Elevation: < 1300 m

Bioregions: D

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