WILDFLOWERS OF NEW MEXICO

Abundant yellow flowers stand on tall stems above the deep-green aromatic foliage of this 1–2 foot, rounded, woody, sub-shrub. The three-season blooming period, heat and drought tolerance, and bright, evergreen foliage make Damianita a popular landscape plant. Note the needle-like leaves and small flower heads above the foliage on long stems.

FLOWERS: April-September. Flower heads 1–inch wide (25 mm) with 8 yellow, petal-like rays 1/4–1/2-inch long (6-12 mm) surround a yellow disk, and are held well above foliage on stems (peduncles) 5/8–3-inches long (15–75 mm ).

LEAVES: Alternate, crowded on twigs. Blades needle-like, aromatic, 1/4–3/8-inch long (5–10 mm), black glandular dots visible with 10x lens.

HABITAT: Sandy, gravelly, limestone soils; desert grasslands and scrub, pinyon-juniper, ponderosa-oak.

ELEVATION: 5,000–7,700 feet.

RANGE: NM, TX.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Dogweed, Thymophylla acerosa and T. pentachaeta, only reach 4–9 inches tall and wide.

NM COUNTIES: Southern NM in mid-elevation, arid habitats: Dona Ana, Grant, Lincoln, Luna, Eddy, Otero, Roosevelt, Sierra.