Alternate name: Leaf-stem Tickseed
Family: Asteraceae, Aster view all from this family
Description Native annual herb.
Habit: low mount of very fine, gray-green foliage; with one or more stout, erect stems.
Height: 4-20 in (10-50 cm).
Leaf: fine, slightly fleshy; what appear to be leaves on the lower stem are actually lobes; each leaf or lobe to 1.25 in (30 mm) long and 1/8 in (3 mm) wide.
Flower: daisy-like, terminal, to 3 in (75 mm) wide; with usually 8 large, upcurved, overlapping rays, yellow to golden, triangular to oblong, with a satin sheen; around a yellow to orange central disk.
Fruit: dry seed, oval, 1/4 in (6 mm) long.
Flower February to June.
Flower March - May.
Habitat Dry, open gravelly sites; alkaline playas, flood plains, deep sands; also cultivated as an ornamental.
Range California: inner Coast Ranges from Alameda to Santa Barbara County, California, east to w. Mojave Desert; 300-3200 ft (100-1000 m).
Discussion Also known as: leafstem tickseed. Leafy-stem Coreopsis is a member of the aster family (family Asteraceae). In this large, worldwide family there are about 920 genera and 19,000 species. Cosmos, Sunflower, Zinnia, Dahlia, and many others are grown as ornamentals; while Lettuce, Sunflowers, and Artichokes provide food.
Comments Does not always persist in the garden.
Exposure Preference Sun.
Native Distribution Inner Coast Ranges from Alameda to Santa Barbara County, California, e. to w. Mojave Desert.
Site Preference Dry, open gravelly sites from 500-3200 ft.
Soil Preference Gravelly or sandy loams.