About Hemizonella minima (A.Gray) A.Gray
Hemizonella is a genus of North American plants in the tribe Madieae, family Asteraceae. The only known species in this genus is Hemizonella minima, commonly called opposite-leaved tarweed. This species is native to British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, Idaho, and Nevada. It grows in a wide range of forest, scrub, and chaparral habitats, spanning from mountain regions to deserts; it occurs specifically in the Sierra Nevada, the Cascade Range, and the Mojave Desert. Hemizonella minima is a small annual herb that produces a thin, fuzzy stem reaching a maximum height of about 15 centimetres (5.9 inches). Its pointed, hairy leaves grow no longer than 2.5 centimetres (0.98 inches). The plant’s inflorescence holds one or more tiny flower heads, which appear oblong or top-shaped when viewed closely. Each flower head is a few millimeters wide, enclosed in phyllaries covered with stalked resin glands, and tipped with minute yellowish florets. Its fruit is an achene a few millimeters long, with no pappus.
