There are a good many kinds of Agoseris, natives of western and
southern North America and of southern South America.
[Sidenote: =Goat Chicory, Large-flowered Agoseris=
_Agóseris glàuca_
=Yellow
Spring
Utah, Ida., Wash., etc.=]
A pretty perennial plant, about fourteen inches tall, with a slender,
slightly woolly flower-stem, springing from a pretty cluster of smooth
bluish-green leaves, sometimes toothless, and bearing a handsome bright
yellow flower, from one to two inches across, the involucre often
covered with white wool. This grows on dry slopes, as far east as
Colorado.
There are a good many kinds of Malacothrix, natives of the western and
southwestern United States.
[Sidenote: _Malácothrix glabràta_
=Yellow
Spring
Southwest, Nev., Utah=]
A very attractive plant, with several flower-stalks, from six inches
to a foot tall, springing from a pretty feathery tuft of bright green
root-leaves, cut into almost threadlike divisions and often tinged with
deep red. The handsome flowers are nearly two inches across, clear very
pale yellow, shading to brighter color towards the middle. This is
common on open plains in southern California, where it passes almost
gradually into _M. Califórnica_, which is similar, but conspicuously
woolly when young, covered with very long, soft hairs.
[Sidenote: =Snake's Head=
_Malácothrix Còulteri_
=White
Spring
California=]
A smooth plant, with a "bloom," from five to sixteen inches high,
often branching from the base, the leaves cut into wavy lobes, with
no leaf-stalk. The handsome flowers are about an inch across, white,
turning pink in fading, the involucres with shining, papery, green
and white bracts. This is one of the most conspicuous annuals in the
San Joaquin Valley. _M. saxàtilis_, the Cliff Aster, is a handsome
perennial, common in southern California and often growing on
sea-cliffs. It has a leafy branching stem, from one to four feet high,
the leaves toothless, or cut into slender divisions, and often quite
fleshy, and many pretty flowers at the ends of the branches. They are
each about an inch across, white, changing to pink or lilac, with an
involucre of many narrow bracts, running down the flower-stalk. This is
common in southern California, blooming in summer and autumn.
[Illustration: Malacothrix glabrata.