Plant Image
Flower head


Yavapai County Native & Naturalized Plants

Helenium autumnale - common sneezeweed

Other Common Names: bitterweed, fall sneezeweed, false sunflower
Plant Form: Forb or Subshrub

Family: Asteraceae


   
 
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Leaf
Paul Rothrock @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)
Plant
Tony Frates @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)
Forb Plant Description

Origin: Native   Life Cycle: Perennial
General Desc: 1 plant can produce as many as 100 yellow flower heads in a branching array; each head has 11 to 21 ray flowers which are turned backward with a scalloped edge of 3 lobes; yellow center of disc flowers is globe-shaped, not flattened.
Identification notes: 2 to 5 feet tall perennial; rigid, heavily winged stems branch near the top; leaves dark green, alternate, lance-shaped; mostly single daisy-like flowers; distinctive wedge-shaped, bright yellow rays; prominent, dome-like, dull yellow center.
Height: 2 to 5 feet


Habitat

Habitat Description: Roadsides, fields, along streams, ditches, seepage areas, around ponds and lakes.
Plant Communities: Riparian, Disturbed Areas
Elevation: 4000 - 6200 feet


Flower Characteristics

Color: Yellow, brownish-yellow     Shape: Daisy or dandelion-like not in clusters     Tubular: N     Flowering Period: Jul - Nov
Description: Flower heads stemmed, mostly single; stems 1 to 4 inches long, moderately to densely hairy; whorl of bracts to 3/4 inch long and to 1 inch wide, moderately to densely hairy; female, fertile ray flowers; corollas yellow; 200 to 400 disc flowers.


Leaf and Stem Characteristics

Leaf Color: Green     Leaf Type: Simple     Leaf Shape: Narrow     Leaf Margin: Smooth     Leaf Attachment: Alternate     Leaves Clasp: N
Hairs: Leaves and stems     Spines: N
Leaf Description: Alternate; moderately to densely hairy; basal blades lance-like; smooth or weakly lobed; center and mid-blades oval to lance-shaped, smooth.


Fruit and Seed Characteristics

Fruit Type: Achene
Fruit Notes: 1/16 inch long, sparsely to moderately hairy. Modified sepals of the achenes are extremely variable, as is the color of the hairs on the achenes, varying from white to reddish-brown.


  Arizona Cooperative Extension
Yavapai County
840 Rodeo Dr #C
Prescott, AZ 86305
(928) 445-6590
Version 8.0  
http://cales.arizona.edu/yavapaiplants/SpeciesDetailForb.php  
Last Updated: Dec 13, 2022
Content Questions/Comments: Email Matt Halldorson  
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