Common spikeweed facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Common spikeweed
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Tribe:	Madieae
Genus:	Centromadia
Species:	C. pungens
Binomial name
Centromadia pungens (Hook. & Arn.) Greene
Synonyms
Centromadia maritima Greene Hartmannia pungens Hook. & Arn. Hemizonia pungens (Hook. & Arn.) Torr. & A.Gray

Centromadia pungens, also known as the common spikeweed or common tarweed, is a plant found in North America. It belongs to the sunflower family, which includes many well-known plants like daisies and sunflowers.

This plant grows naturally in Baja California (Mexico) and the western United States. You can find it in states like California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, and Arizona. In some parts of the Pacific Northwest, it is even considered a plant that grows where it is not wanted.

What is Common Spikeweed Like?

Centromadia pungens is a type of herb. It can grow quite tall, reaching up to about 120 centimeters (about 4 feet).

This plant produces many yellow flower heads. Each flower head has two kinds of tiny flowers:

• Ray florets are like the petals you see around the outside of a sunflower.
• Disc florets are the small flowers packed together in the center of the flower head.

Different Kinds of Spikeweed

Within the Centromadia pungens species, there are slightly different versions called subspecies. These are groups of plants that are part of the same species but have small differences, often because they grow in different areas.

Here are the two main subspecies:

• Centromadia pungens subsp. laevis - This one is found in Baja California and southern California.
• Centromadia pungens subsp. pungens - This subspecies is found across most of the plant's usual range.