Decorating our roadsides

Heterotheca pumila, August 3, 2021

Heterotheca pumila, August 3, 2021

Common & scientific name
Alpine goldenaster, Heterotheca pumila

Family
Sunflower, Asteraceae

Location
Roadside, 11,700’

Fun, weird, helpful, or little known fact
While all guide books describe this and its close cousin Heterotheca villosa as “highly variable” (in size, leaf shape, hairiness, etc.), it is easily identifiable by its strongly pungent smell, location (subalpine to alpine, in dry, exposed places like trailside or roadside), and its numerous yellow flowers atop a roundish mound of grayish-green leaves.