Frémont's goldfields facts for kids
- Further information: John C. Frémont botanical nomenclature eponyms
Quick facts for kids Frémont's goldfields |
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Lasthenia
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L. fremontii
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| Lasthenia fremontii (Torr. ex Gray) Greene
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Baeria fremontii |
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Lasthenia fremontii is a beautiful yellow flowering plant. It belongs to the daisy family. People often call it Frémont's goldfields because of its bright color and because it was named after John C. Frémont. This plant is special because it only grows in one specific place: the California Central Valley. You can find it in wet areas like vernal pools and grassy meadows.
Contents
What Does Frémont's Goldfields Look Like?
Frémont's goldfields is a small plant that grows for only one year. It is an annual herb. It can grow up to about 35 centimeters tall, which is roughly the length of a school ruler. Its stem can be branched, meaning it has many smaller stems, or it can be a single stem.
Leaves and Stems
The stems of this plant are often a bit hairy. Its leaves are long and narrow, like a line. They can grow up to about 6 centimeters long. Sometimes, the leaves might have a few small lobes or bumps on them.
Flowers and Blooms
At the top of the stems, you'll see groups of flowers. These groups are called inflorescences. Each group has many small flower heads. These flower heads are surrounded by hairy leaf-like structures called phyllaries.
The center of each flower head is packed with many tiny, yellow, tube-shaped flowers. These are called disc florets. Around the edge, there's a fringe of small, flat petals. These are called ray florets. They are usually yellow, but sometimes they can be white.
Seeds and Fruit
After the flowers bloom, they produce small fruits. Each fruit is called an achene. These achenes are club-shaped and have tiny hairs on them. They are very small, less than 2 millimeters long. These tiny fruits contain the seeds that will grow into new plants the next year.
Where Does Frémont's Goldfields Grow?
Frémont's goldfields is an endemic plant. This means it naturally grows only in one specific area. For this plant, that area is the California Central Valley. This valley is a large, flat area in the middle of California.
Habitat: Vernal Pools and Meadows
This plant loves to grow in wet places. You can often find it in vernal pools. Vernal pools are special puddles or ponds that fill up with water during the rainy season. They then dry out completely in the summer. Frémont's goldfields is adapted to grow in these unique, changing conditions. It also thrives in damp meadows.
