Slenderstem lessingia facts for kids

The Lessingia nemaclada, also known as the slenderstem lessingia, is a type of flowering plant. It belongs to the daisy family. This plant is special because it only grows in California. You can find it in the northern parts of the Central Valley and nearby hills. It also grows in the Sierra Nevada foothills and the mountains around the San Francisco Bay Area.

Meet the Slenderstem Lessingia

The slenderstem lessingia is an annual herb. This means it completes its whole life cycle in one year. It can look very different from one plant to another. Some plants are tiny, just a few centimeters tall. Others can grow over half a meter tall. They often have many branches spreading out.

What Does It Look Like?

This plant often feels sticky or bumpy because it has special glands. You can usually see these glands easily on its leaves. It can also be quite hairy or even woolly.

Leaves and Flowers

The leaves at the top of the plant are small and do not have any lobes. The lower leaves are bigger. They might have lobes or jagged edges, like teeth. However, these lower leaves usually dry up and fall off early.

The plant's flower heads grow either by themselves or in small groups. Each flower head has special leaf-like parts called phyllaries around it. These phyllaries are smooth and also have glands.

The flower heads are shaped like a disc. They do not have the flat "petals" you might see on a typical daisy. Instead, they have a few funnel-shaped flowers called disc florets. These tiny flowers can be pale purple, pinkish, or almost white. They have narrow lobes at their tips.

How It Reproduces

After the flowers bloom, the plant produces fruit. The fruit is a small, dry seed called an achene. It has a whitish, feathery top called a pappus. This pappus is made of bristles that can sometimes be joined together at their ends. The pappus helps the seeds float away in the wind.