Chaenactis fremontii

Chaenactis fremontii (desert pincushion) ( )

Asteraceae

• A common species with white discoid flowers is desert pincushion. It is one of eight related species of pincushion in the California deserts. Most of these are annuals, although there are two species of perennial pincushion in the mountains of the eastern an northern Mojave Desert. Desert pincushion is an erect, branched annual that begins life with a basal rosette of leaves, which senesces as the stems mature and flowering begins. The smooth stems lack hairs and produce single or multiple flower heads composed entirely of disk flowers. In favorable years, desert pincushion is found blooming in massive numbers across open sandy flats of creosote bush scrub and Joshua tree woodlands. "California Desert Plants, Philip W Rundel, Robert J Gustafson, Michael E Kauffmann."