Helichrysum luteoalbum, or pseudognaphalium luteoalbum, is a naturalized plant, native to Asia and Europe, and can be distinguished from similar species by the red-tipped corollas of the disc florets, which number between 140 and 160; in a tight cluster, enclosed by the translucent, ovate, silvery-yellow phyllaries. Flowerheads are clustered together in flat-topped arrays, each discrete cluster around one inch across.
The light green, non-glandular leaves are crowded along the stems (less than half an inch between adjacent nodes); all are evenly covered with short, greyish-white hairs. Leaves are often somewhat folded up along the midvein.
Common names:
Jersey cudweed, red-tipped rabbit tobacco
Family:
Scientific name:
Helichrysum luteoalbum
Synonym:
Pseudognaphalium luteoalbum
Main flower color:
Range:
Mainly in California and Arizona; scattered areas of neighboring states; a naturalized species
Height:
Up to 40 cm
Habitat:
Washes, canyons, gardens, roadsides, fields, disturbed ground
Leaves:
Narrowly oblanceolate to obovate, up to 2 inches long, entire, covered in light grey tomentose hairs
Season:
March to August
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