Grindelia squarrosa var. serrulata

Curlycup gumweed

Family: Asteraceae · Type: biennial · Not Native

Curlycup gumweed is a naturalized biennial found in California's High Sierra Nevada, Transverse Ranges, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert in disturbed roadsides and streamsides at elevations of 700 to 2,300 meters. Flowering from July to September, this plant produces yellow flowers with distinctive green-tipped, straw-colored phyllaries that curl completely around in a 360-degree coil. Growing up to 60 centimeters tall with a much-branched structure, it develops decumbent to erect stems that spread extensively across disturbed areas. Its leaves are gray-green, oblong to ovate, with crenate edges featuring small yellow bumps at each tooth's tip, creating a unique textural appearance. The fruit is light brown to yellowish, topped with 2 to 3 short pappus awns that aid in seed dispersal.

Habitat: Disturbed roadsides, streamsides

Bloom period: Jul-Sep

Elevation: 700-2300 m

Bioregions: CaRH, SNH, TR, GB, DMoj

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