Helenium bolanderi
Bolander's sneezeweed
(c) John Hibbard, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Asteraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Helenium bolanderi (Bolander's sneezeweed) is a native California herb in the Asteraceae family, recognized by . Key features: 1-3 very large heads, densely hairy peduncles, reflexed phyllaries.
Bolander's sneezeweed is a California native perennial found in northern coastal regions in bogs, seepage areas, and wet meadows at elevations of 30 to 200 meters. Flowering from June to September, this plant produces yellow ray flowers with distinctive yellow to brown or purple disk centers in heads 14 to 24 millimeters wide. Growing with a single generally unbranched stem 25 to 140 centimeters tall, it has weakly winged stems that are glabrous or slightly hairy. Its leaves range from spoon-shaped to ovate, with basal leaves entire and cauline leaves varying from oblanceolate to oblong-elliptic. The plant produces small fruits 1.5 to 2.5 millimeters long, topped with 6 to 8 pappus scales.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 1 sympatric species. Key features: 1-3 very large heads, densely hairy peduncles, reflexed phyllaries
Habitat and range
Habitat: Bogs, seepage areas, wet meadows
Elevation: 30-200 m
Outside California: Oregon
Bloom period
Helenium bolanderi blooms Jun-Sep.
How to tell it apart
vs Rudbeckia: Rudbeckia has a dark purple-brown cone; Helenium has a yellow or greenish spherical disk.; vs Cotula: Cotula lacks ray flowers entirely; Helenium has yellow rays around the spherical disk.; vs Hymenoxys: Hymenoxys has deeply dissected ferny leaves; Helenium leaves are entire or shallowly lobed.; vs Oncosiphon: Oncosiphon lacks ray flowers and has finely divided ferny leaves; Helenium has rays and simple to lobed leaves.; vs Helianthella: Helianthella has flat disks with erect phyllaries; Helenium has spherical disks with reflexed phyllaries.
Frequently asked questions
Is Helenium bolanderi native to California?
Yes. Helenium bolanderi is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Helenium bolanderi bloom?
Helenium bolanderi blooms Jun-Sep.
What plant family does Helenium bolanderi belong to?
Helenium bolanderi is in the Asteraceae family, genus Helenium.
What habitat does Helenium bolanderi grow in?
Helenium bolanderi grows in Bogs, seepage areas, wet meadows.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.