Smooth desert dandelion facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Smooth desert dandelion |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Malacothrix_(plant)
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| Species: |
glabrata
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The Malacothrix glabrata, often called the smooth desert dandelion or just desert dandelion, is a beautiful plant. It's an annual plant, which means it grows, flowers, and dies all within one year. This plant belongs to the Asteraceae family, which is also known as the daisy or sunflower family.
You can find the smooth desert dandelion growing in the deserts of southwestern North America. It has bright, eye-catching flowers that are usually pale yellow to white. The name "glabrata" gives us a clue about the plant's leaves. It means they are almost completely smooth and hairless! Like other plants in its genus, it has a milky sap inside its stems. Its flower heads are made up of many smaller, strap-like flowers called "ligules".
Where Desert Dandelions Grow
This plant is native to the western parts of the United States. It grows in many states, but not much in the Pacific Northwest. You can also find it growing in northern Mexico. The smooth desert dandelion is a dicot, which means its seeds have two first leaves when they sprout.
What Desert Dandelions Look Like
Malacothrix glabrata plants usually grow to be about 5 to 15 inches (13 to 38 centimeters) tall. Their flower heads are quite large, measuring about 1.5 to 2.5 inches (4 to 6.5 centimeters) across.
The flowers are fragrant and look a lot like daisies. They can be yellow or white. Sometimes, the center of the flower head has an orange or red "button." This button is actually made up of several tiny, young flowers that haven't opened yet.
Gallery
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Desert dandelions in the Pinto Valley, Joshua Tree National Park, California. -
Malacothrix glabrata, photographed at Joshua Tree National Park. -
Desert dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata), Anza-Borrego Desert State Park -
Desert dandelions and desert pincushions, Joshua Tree National Park, March 30, 2005 -
M. glabrata flower & hairless leaves
See also
In Spanish: Malacothrix glabrata para niños
