Heterotheca sessiliflora subsp. echioides

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Heterotheca sessiliflora subspecies echioides is a California native perennial found in central Sierra Nevada foothills, Tehama County, San Joaquin Valley, central western California, southern California coastal areas, Transverse Ranges, and Peninsular Ranges in grassland, scrub, woodland, and open forest habitats at elevations to 2,100 meters. Flowering from July to October, this plant produces yellow flowers in numerous heads across tall plant structures. Growing with bristly stems 30 to 60 centimeters tall, it develops a stiff, gray-green appearance with distinctively rough texture. Its leaves are elliptic to lanceolate, flat or slightly wavy, covered in strigose hairs approximately 2 millimeters long, with distal leaves progressively smaller and stiffer. The plant's robust bristly character and dense hair coverage make it particularly distinctive in open grassland and scrub environments.

Habitat: Grassland, scrub, woodland, open forest, disturbed sites

Bloom period: Jul-Oct

Elevation: < 2100 m

Bioregions: c&amps SNF, Teh, SnJV, CW, SCo, TR, PR.

California counties: Kern, Riverside, Alameda, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Marin, Monterey, Orange, San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, Tulare, Ventura, Fresno, Merced, Solano, Stanislaus, San Francisco, Madera, Napa

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