Micropus californicus

Q-tips, Q-Tips

Family: Asteraceae · Type: annual · Native

Q-tips is a California native annual found in open grasslands and dry meadows across the state. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces white to cream-colored flower heads with distinctive paleae that resemble small, hooked Q-tips. Growing with slender stems 5 to 50 centimeters tall, it forms delicate, low-growing clusters across its habitat. Its leaves are small and narrow, typically arranged alternately along the stems. The tiny flower heads feature unique paleae that curl upward, creating a distinctive hook-like silhouette that gives the plant its common name.

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