Loomis' thimblehead facts for kids

Hymenothrix loomisii, also known as the Loomis' thimblehead, is a type of flowering plant found in North America. It belongs to the daisy family, which is a very large group of plants that includes sunflowers and dandelions.

Discovering Loomis' Thimblehead

Its Home: Deserts and Mountains

This plant naturally grows in the southwestern parts of the United States. You can find it in states like Arizona, New Mexico, and southern Nevada. It also grows further south in Mexico, specifically in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains in western Chihuahua. Sometimes, you might hear about it growing in southern California, but these plants were likely brought there by people and don't naturally belong in that area.

What Loomis' Thimblehead Looks Like

The Loomis' thimblehead is an annual herb. This means it's a plant that lives for only one growing season, usually sprouting from a seed, growing, flowering, producing seeds, and then dying all within a single year. It can grow to be about 70 cm (28 in) tall, which is roughly the height of a small child.

Its flowers are quite interesting. Each flower head has between 10 and 20 small flowers. These are called disc flowers and they are usually yellow or cream-colored. Unlike some daisies, the Loomis' thimblehead does not have ray flowers. Ray flowers are the petal-like parts you see on the outside of a sunflower or a typical daisy.