Coastal Sneezeweed

Perennials, 25–140 cm. Stems usually 1, usually unbranched distally, weakly winged, glabrous proximally, sparsely to moderately hairy distally. Leaves glabrous or sparsely hairy; basal and proximal blades spatulate, entire; mid and distal blades ovate to oblanceolate to oblong-elliptic, entire. Heads 1(–3) per plant, usually borne singly. Peduncles 10–30(–50) cm, usually densely hairy (tomentose near involucres). Involucres depressed hemispheric to globoid, 14–24 × 18–34 mm. Phyllaries (connate proximally) usually tomentose. Ray florets 15–30, pistillate, fertile; corollas yellow, (12–)16–28(–37) × 6–13(–25) mm. Disc florets 300–750(–1000+); corollas yellow proximally, yellow to brown to purple distally, 4–5(–5.2) mm, lobes 5. Cypselae 1.5–2.5 mm, moderately to densely hairy; pappi of 6–8 entire, aristate scales (2.5–)3–4.5 mm. 2n = 32.

Dugaldia grandiflora Rydberg, sp. nov
A tall perennial; stem 6 dm. high or more, sparingly arachnoidvillous above, glabrous below; lower leaves oblanceolate, obtuse, about 1.5 dm. long; upper stem-leaves broadly lanceolate, acute, slightly decurrent, sparingly villous when young; heads solitary at the end of the stem, and of the branches if present; involucre about 3 cm. broad; bracts lanceolate, acute or acuminate, densely villous; ray-flowers numerous; ligules 2-2.5 cm. long, 5-12 mm. wide, deeply 3-lobed, conspicuously villous; disk-corollas 5 mm. long; achenes densely hirsute; squamellae 4 mm. long, from a lanceolate base attenuate into a very long awn-tip.
Type collected in California in 1868 or 1869, Kellogg &• Harford 469 (herb. N. Y. Bot. Gard.).

Helenium bolanderi A. Gray, Proc. Am. Acad. 7: 358. 1868
Heleniastrum Bolanderi Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 342. 1891. Hyme?wxys latissima Cockerell, Bull. Torrey Club 31: 498. 1904.
A simple perennial; stem stout, 3-6 dm. high, sparingly pubescent with crisp hairs, especially on the peduncle, or glabrate, slightly winged; lower leaves oblanceolate, 1-3 cm. long, thin, entire, glabrous or nearly so; upper leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate or elliptic; heads solitary or rarely 2, on long peduncles, radiate; peduncles 1-2 dm. long, often thickened above; bracts lanceolate, villous, 7 mm. long; ray-flowers many, pistillate; ligules yellow, 15-18 mm. long, 7-15 mm. wide; disk brown or purplish-brown, 2-2.5 cm. broad; corollas 4 mm. long, puberulent; achenes 2 mm. long, hispid on the ribs; squamellae fully 2 mm. long, lanceolate, acuminate into a long awn-tip.
Type locality: Plains of Mendocino, California.
Distribution: Central and northern California and southern Oregon.

Helenium bolanderi is a North American species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name coastal sneezeweed. It is native to southern Oregon and northern California as far south as Mendocino County, primarily along the seacoast.

Helenium bolanderi perennial herb sometimes as much as 140 cm (56 inches or 4 2/3 feet) in height. It has a generally unbranched, erect stem with oval-shaped leaves. The flowers arise on naked peduncles with one to three flower heads per plant. Each flower head has a fringe of 15-30 golden yellow ray florets bent backwards from a rounded center of sometimes over 1000 disc florets (yellow toward the base but brown or purple near the tips). The fruit is a tiny, hairy achene a few millimeters long.