Spanish oyster plant

Description:

Well adapted to the arid conditions of sandy soil, Spanish Oyster Plant always looks fresh and green, and is covered in abundant flowers even in midsummer when other plants are scorched and brown. It has irregularly branching stems with numerous spiny, thistle-like leaves, which merge with spiny wings that run down the stem. The bright orange-yellows, stalkless flowerheads - each made up of conspicuous ray florets - are produced in the leaf axils, with several in flower on each stem.

Habitat:

Found on sandy soil of waste and fallow ground, roadsides, olive groves, and along the coast; always in the open.

Notes:

Spotted in the Rio Formosa Natural Park, Olhão.