Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea
False-gold groundsel
Family: Asteraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea (False-gold groundsel) is a native California herb in the Asteraceae family, recognized by . Distinguished by hastate basal leaves and wet habitat.
False-gold groundsel is a California native perennial found in the Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, and Warner Mountains in damp streambanks, wet meadows, and open woodland at elevations of 1,500 to 2,000 meters. Flowering from June to July, this plant produces yellow ray flowers 6 to 10 millimeters long in radiate heads with 12 to 20 clusters. Growing 5 to 7 tall with a single stem or rarely up to 4 clustered stems that are glabrous or sparsely tomentose. Its basal leaves are widely lanceolate to nearly hastate, 2 to 5 centimeters long with sharply dentate margins, truncate or heart-shaped at the base. The inflorescence features 70 to 80 disk flowers surrounded by 8 to 13 ray flowers in an open, nearly flat-topped cluster with light green phyllaries.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 13 sympatric species. Distinguished by hastate basal leaves and wet habitat.
Habitat and range
Habitat: Damp streambanks, wet meadows, open, wet woodland
Elevation: 1500-2000 m
Outside California: to British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Wyoming, Nevada
Bloom period
Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea blooms Jun-Jul.
How to tell it apart
vs Senecio: Packera has green or red bract tips and fibrous roots; Senecio often has black bract tips and taproots.; vs Jacobaea: Packera is native with soft-toothed leaf margins; Jacobaea is non-native with harder-edged leaves.; vs Arnica: Packera has alternate leaves and many small heads; Arnica has opposite leaves and fewer large heads.; vs Eriophyllum: Packera has green leaves with soft hairs; Eriophyllum has densely woolly gray-white leaves.; vs Eriogonum: Packera has yellow daisy flowers; buckwheat has ball-like clusters of tiny pink/white/yellow flowers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea native to California?
Yes. Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea bloom?
Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea blooms Jun-Jul.
What plant family does Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea belong to?
Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea is in the Asteraceae family, genus Packera.
What habitat does Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea grow in?
Packera pseudaurea var. pseudaurea grows in Damp streambanks, wet meadows, open, wet woodland.
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.