Golden madia facts for kids

Madia radiata is a type of flowering plant. It is also known as the golden madia or showy madia. This plant belongs to the aster family, which includes sunflowers and daisies. It grows only in California, especially in the Central Coast Ranges and nearby areas like the San Francisco Bay Area and Central Valley.

What Does Golden Madia Look Like?

Madia radiata is an annual herb. This means it lives for only one growing season. It can grow from 10 to 90 centimeters (about 4 to 35 inches) tall. Its stem often has branches and is covered in sticky, round glands that produce resin.

The leaves of the plant are bristly and also have glands. They can be up to 10 centimeters (about 4 inches) long. The leaves are often wider near the top of the plant than at the bottom.

The plant's inflorescence (which is a group of flowers) creates special flower heads. These heads are surrounded by hairy, gland-covered leaves called phyllaries. Each flower head has bright golden yellow ray florets, which look like petals, up to almost 2 centimeters long. The center of the flower head is full of many smaller disc florets. After the flowers bloom, the plant produces a black fruit called an achene. This fruit is only a few millimeters long and does not have a feathery top (called a pappus).

Where Does Golden Madia Grow?

The exact places where Madia radiata grows today are not fully known. Most of the times this plant was seen were many years ago. Since then, no one has confirmed if they are still there. It is possible that many of these plant groups have disappeared from their original locations.