Woolly Paperflower
Psilostrophe tagetina
Family: Asteraceae
Perennial plant growing to about 2x2’. Yellow flowers in summer into fall. Full sun, moderate water, hardy to -10°F. Cut back spent growth to encourage new, fresh growth and blooms.
The flowers are visited by numerous pollinators and seeds are consumed by granivorous birds and mammals.
Used medicinally to treat stomach aches, itching, sore throats, and snake bites; also used ceremonially and to make a yellow paint or dye.
Photo by chloepryor on iNaturalist
Psilostrophe tagetina on SEINET
There are 8 species Psilostrophe native to North America. Psilostrophe is from Greek psilos, naked or bare, and trophos, a nurturer or nurse, alluding to the naked, epaleate receptacle (the "nurse"); tagetina means similar to the genus Tagetes, the marigold genus.
Found in open sites, often on limestone soils, saline flats, or sandy soils, from 2,000-8,000 ft. in Utah and Arizona, east to Texas and Kansas; south into Mexico.