Pyrrocoma apargioides

Alpine flames, Alpine Flames

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Alpine flames is a California native perennial found in the Sierra Nevada and eastern Sierra Nevada on rocky slopes, meadows, and forest openings at elevations of 2,200 to 3,800 meters. Flowering from July to September, this plant produces distinctive yellow ray flowers with reddened undersides, creating bright heads up to 2 centimeters in diameter. Growing with compact stems 5 to 18 centimeters tall and few leaves, it forms a low, tightly clustered growth habit. Its basal leaves are leathery, approximately 4 to 10 centimeters long, with coarse teeth or irregular cuts, giving the plant a rugged alpine appearance. The plant produces fruit 2.5 to 6 millimeters long with a tan pappus, typical of its high-elevation mountain habitat.

Habitat: Rocky slopes, meadows, forest openings

Bloom period: Jul-Sep

Elevation: 2200-3800 m

Bioregions: SNH, SNE

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