Madia elegans
Common madia
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Family: Asteraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Madia elegans (Common madia) is a native California herb in the Asteraceae family, recognized by showy bright yellow flowers often with maroon at base, and large ray size 4-20mm.
Common madia is a California native annual found in California Floristic Province (excluding Channel Islands) and Great Basin regions in grassy, open, or disturbed sites, including serpentine soils at elevations up to 3,400 meters. Flowering from April to November, this plant produces bright yellow ray flowers often maroon at the base, with showy heads arranged in open, flat-topped clusters. Growing 6 to 250 centimeters tall with stems that are soft to coarse-hairy and glandular-hairy with yellow, purple, or black glands, lateral branches occasionally exceed the main stem. Its leaves are 3 to 20 centimeters long and 2 to 20 millimeters wide, ranging from lanceolate to linear in shape. The ray fruits are compressed or slightly three-angled, black or brown, and occasionally mottled, with a dull or glossy surface.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 9 sympatric species; distinguished by showy bright yellow flowers often with maroon at base, and large ray size 4-20mm
Habitat and range
Habitat: Grassy, open, or disturbed sites, in coarse or clayey soils, including serpentine
Elevation: < 3400 m
Outside California: to Washington, Nevada, Baja California
Bloom period
Madia elegans blooms Apr-Nov.
How to tell it apart
vs Anisocarpus: Madia has absolutely no pappus on disk flowers; Anisocarpus has 5-21 scales forming a pappus on disk flowers.; vs Deinandra: Madia has ray fruits completely hidden by bracts and no disk pappus; Deinandra has exposed ray fruits and disk pappus present.; vs Layia: Madia has bright yellow rays and no disk pappus; Layia often has white or bicolored rays and hairy disk pappus.; vs Hemizonia: Madia has fruits completely wrapped by bracts; Hemizonia has fruits only partly enclosed by bracts.; vs Lagophylla: Madia has yellow rays and no pappus; Lagophylla has white rays and scale-like pappus on disk flowers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Madia elegans native to California?
Yes. Madia elegans is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Madia elegans bloom?
Madia elegans blooms Apr-Nov.
What plant family does Madia elegans belong to?
Madia elegans is in the Asteraceae family, genus Madia.
What habitat does Madia elegans grow in?
Madia elegans grows in Grassy, open, or disturbed sites, in coarse or clayey soils, including serpentine.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · 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.