Camphorweed

Description:

Flower with yellow rays and orange-yellow disks. The flowers are loosely clustered at the tips of the upper branched stems. The individual flower heads are 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide and ringed with slender, overlapping, yellow rays. The flowers are followed by fluffy, tan seed heads. The leaves mostly line the lower part of the unbranched main stems and are green, hairy, sessile, and rounded to egg-shaped. The stems are green, hairy, upright, unbranched below, and well-branched above, giving this plant a very distinctive shape.

Habitat:

This weedy wildflower grows in disturbed areas and is a common roadside plant. This one was growing along a dirt road in Edgefield County, SC.

Notes:

The foliage reeks of camphor when handled or crushed and can leave the smell on your hands.