About Holocarpha heermannii (Greene) D.D.Keck
Holocarpha heermannii is an annual herb that mostly grows erect, reaching a height between 20 centimeters (7.9 inches) and over 1 meter (3.3 feet). Its stem is densely glandular and covered with both short and long hairs. Leaves near the base of the plant grow up to 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) long, while leaves growing along the stem are smaller. The inflorescence forms a spreading array of branches that hold clusters of flower heads. Each flower head is lined with phyllaries covered in large bulbous resin glands; these phyllaries are hairy and sticky in texture. The flower head holds many yellow disc florets, surrounded by three to 10 golden yellow ray florets. Achenes produced by ray florets and fertile disc florets have different shapes. This species grows in the hills, mountains, and valleys of central and southern California. It is most common in the Inner Coast Ranges of the eastern San Francisco Bay Area, the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, and the Tehachapi Mountains. It can also be found in the Southern Outer California Coast Ranges and the western Transverse Ranges.
