''Chaenactis fremontii'', with the common names Frémont's pincushion and desert pincushion, is a species of annual wildflower in the daisy family. Both the latter common name, and the specific epithet are chosen in honor of John C. Frémont.

Distribution and habitat

''Chaenactis fremontii'' is native to the Southwestern United States and northern

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

. It grows in sandy and gravelly soils in the deserts and low mountains, such as the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and the

Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Ariz ...

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s. It is found in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, and southern

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

Description

''Chaenactis fremontii'' grows in patches of long stems up to long that are green when new and grow reddish with age. They may branch to extend many tall, almost naked stems. The sparse leaves are somewhat fleshy and long and pointed. Atop each erect stem is an

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

bearing usually one but sometimes more flower heads, each with plentiful densely packed

disc floret The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

s. There may be very large ray florets around the edge of the discoid head. The flowers are white or very light pink.Flora of North America, Fremont or desert pincushion, pincushion flower, ''Chaenactis fremontii'' A. Gray
/ref>

References

External links

*
Calflora Database: ''Chaenactis fremontii'' (Fremont pincushion)
* fremontii Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora of California Flora of Baja California Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Sonoran Deserts Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of the Mojave Desert Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges Natural history of the Transverse Ranges Plants described in 1883 Taxa named by Asa Gray Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Asteroideae-stub