California Chicory
California Plumeseed
Rafinesquia californica
Photographed in Devil's Canyon, Gila Co., Arizona. April 2010.
Sponsored Link:
ANNUAL HERB: Plants are mostly less than 50 cm
in height. Several ascending/branching stems.
FLOWERS: Heads of bright white strap-shaped florets. Blooming mostly mid
spring. The longest straps are shorter than those of the similar
Desert Chicory.
RANGE: Grows on rocky slopes on the drier ledges above the creek flood
zone. Fairly common through the southwestern parts of the United States.
LEAVES: Leaves and stem are smooth; milky sap exudes from breaks.
Margins of leaves are coursely toothed.
FRUIT: Small seeds topped by a set of plumose bristles. The end of the
seed has a long slender beak. The similar
Desert Chicory has a shorter, stouter beak.
UNARMED.