About Hedypnois rhagadioloides (L.) F.W.Schmidt
Hedypnois rhagadioloides, commonly called Cretanweed or scaly hawkbit, is a plant species belonging to the tribe Cichorieae of the family Asteraceae. It is native to the Mediterranean Region and adjacent areas ranging from the Canary Islands to Iran, and has become naturalized in Australia and parts of the Americas, including southwestern United States, Baja California in Mexico, and central Chile. This is an annual herb that varies in the presence of hairs, with some individuals being hispid, and can grow flower stalks up to 40 centimeters (16 inches) tall. Most of its leaves are clustered around the base of the plant, resembling the leaves of the common dandelion apart from their bristles. Leaves are either green or purplish, and can reach up to 18 centimeters (7.2 inches) in length. The plant produces a flower stalk that bears either a single flower head or a flat-topped cluster of multiple heads. The flower head has rows of phyllaries that may be very bristly, and the head is egg-shaped while it remains closed. Each flower head contains 8 to 30 yellow ray flowers, and does not produce any disc flowers.
