About Thelesperma subnudum A.Gray
Thelesperma subnudum is a perennial herb that usually reaches 10 to 40 cm (3.9 to 15.7 in) in height. Its stem leaves are mostly crowded over the proximal quarter to half of the plant’s total height. The calyculi consist of 7 to 9 deltate to lance-linear bractlets that measure 2 to 4 or more millimeters. Each flower head contains either zero or eight ray florets. The ray laminae are yellow, and typically 12 to 20 mm (0.47 to 0.79 in) long. The disc corollas are yellow, and sometimes have red-brown nerves. Its cypselae are 5 to 7 mm (0.20 to 0.28 in) long. This species generally blooms from May to September. It is native to Alberta, Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. It grows at elevations between 1000 and 2900 meters above sea level, in open areas within pinyon-juniper or yellow pine forests. The Navajo people have used its flowers to make a yellow to orange dye solution for dyeing woolen yarns.
