Geraea canescens

For other uses, see Desert Sunflower (disambiguation).

Geraea canescens
Desert Sunflower (Geraea canescens)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Genus:	Geraea
Species:	G. canescens
Binomial name
Geraea canescens Torr. & Gray

Geraea canescens is also known as the desert sunflower, hairy desert sunflower, or desert gold. It is a dicot and annual of the Aster (Asteraceae) family. "Geraea" in its scientific name comes from the Greek geraios ("old man"), referring to the white hairs on the fruits.^[1]

The desert sunflower has a yellow sunflower-like flower, each flower on a slender, hairy stem. It grows 1-3 feet (0.3–1 m) high. The leaves are gray-green and grow to 3 inches (7.6 cm) long. It flowers February through May after sufficient rainfall.

It is native to western North America, specifically Arizona, Nevada, California, and Utah. A drought-avoiding annual plant, it can be found in the California, Mojave, and Sonoran Deserts. It grows from sea level to 4,265 feet (1,300 m) in sandy desert soil in the company of creosote brush.^[2]

The flowers attract bees and birds. Seeds are eaten by birds and rodents.^[3]

There are two varieties of Geraea canescens:

• Geraea canescens var. canescens
• Geraea canescens var. paniculata S.F.Blake

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  Closeup of fruits

References

1. ^ Geraea canescens. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GECA2
2. ^ CalFlora Taxon Report. http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?where-taxon=Geraea+canescens
3. ^ Desert Sunflower. Desert USA. http://www.desertusa.com/mag99/feb/papr/desunflower.html

External links

• USDA. Geraea canescens Torr. & Gray. Hairy Desertsunflower. PLANTS Profile.
• Geraea canescens. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
• Picture of Desert Sunflowers in Death Valley
• CalPhotos page for desert sunflower
• Map of the Desert Sunflower's range

This Heliantheae article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Heliantheae North American desert flora Flora of the California desert regions Flora of Arizona Heliantheae stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР? Royal Route, Warsaw Dunhuang map Look at other dictionaries: Geraea canescens — Ger …   Wikipédia en Français Geraea canescens — ID 36986 Symbol Key GECA2 Common Name hairy desertsunflower Family Asteraceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity Native to U.S. US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution AZ, CA, NV, UT Growth Habit Forb/herb …   USDA Plant Characteristics Geraea canescens Torr. & A. Gray var. canescens — Symbol GECA2 Synonym Symbol GECAC2 Botanical Family Asteraceae …   Scientific plant list Geraea canescens Torr. & A. Gray — Symbol GECA2 Common Name hairy desertsunflower Botanical Family Asteraceae …   Scientific plant list Geraea canescens Torr. & A. Gray var. paniculata (A. Gray) S.F. Blake — Symbol GECA2 Synonym Symbol GECAP Botanical Family Asteraceae …   Scientific plant list Geraea canescens Torr. & A. Gray var. paniculata (A. Gray) S.F. Blake — Symbol GECA2 Synonym Symbol GECAP Botanical Family Asteraceae …   Scientific plant list Geraea — canesc …   Wikipédia en Français Geraea —   Geraea …   Wikipedia Español Geraea — Taxobox name = Geraea image width = 250px image caption = Geraea canescens regnum = Plantae divisio = Magnoliophyta classis = Magnoliopsida ordo = Asterales familia = Asteraceae tribus = Heliantheae genus = Geraea genus authority = Torr. A.Gray,… …   Wikipedia List of plants by common name (Sonoran Desert) — This is a List of plants by common name (Sonoran Desert), for the Sonoran Desert and local environs; (S California, etc New Mexico, S, SW or Rio Grande Valley Northern Mexico states: Sonora, Chihuahua and Baja California, North and South, and… …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”