Eriastrum luteum
Encyclopedia
Eriastrum luteum is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family
known by the common names yellow woollystar and yellow-flowered eriastrum. This wildflower is endemic to California
where it is known only from Monterey
and San Luis Obispo Counties
. This is a small annual rarely reaching the maximum 25 centimeters in height. It has occasional thin, threadlike leaves which are covered in a coat of woolly hairs. The inflorescence
is a cluster of leaflike green or reddish bract
s strung densely with cobwebby white wool and bearing bright yellow flowers. Each flower has five rounded lobes and long, protruding stamen
s with large anthers.
Polemoniaceae
Polemoniaceae are a family of about 25 genera with 270-400 species of annual and perennial plants, native to the Northern Hemisphere and South America, with the center of diversity in western North America, especially in California.Only one genus is found in Europe, and two in Asia, where they...
known by the common names yellow woollystar and yellow-flowered eriastrum. This wildflower is endemic to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
where it is known only from Monterey
Monterey County, California
Monterey County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, its northwestern section forming the southern half of Monterey Bay. The northern half of the bay is in Santa Cruz County. As of 2010, the population was 415,057. The county seat and largest city is Salinas...
and San Luis Obispo Counties
San Luis Obispo County, California
San Luis Obispo County is a county located along the Pacific Ocean in the Central Coast of the U.S. state of California, between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2010 census its population was 269,637, up from 246,681 at the 2000 census...
. This is a small annual rarely reaching the maximum 25 centimeters in height. It has occasional thin, threadlike leaves which are covered in a coat of woolly hairs. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a cluster of leaflike green or reddish bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
s strung densely with cobwebby white wool and bearing bright yellow flowers. Each flower has five rounded lobes and long, protruding stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s with large anthers.