ID Characteristics
This plant is in the Asteraceae - the aster family.
Whitestem paperflower grows 1.5-2 feet tall and just as wide, sometimes wider, from a woody base. It has a naturally rounded form. In the photo above you can see both yellow flowers and older flowers that have become papery and cream-colored.
The stems are slender and covered with felty white hairs. These hairs are lost with age, so the older stems appear more green than white. The hairs can be seen on the stem in the photo below and in the photo of the back of the flower head. Click the photo to enlarge.
The alternate leaves are long and slender, 1-2 inches long. They appear green next to the white stems.
Each 1-inch flower head has 3-6 large 3-lobed yellow petals that are bent slightly backward toward the stem (reflexed). The central disc flowers are also yellow. There is only one flower head on each stem. Flowers are borne in abundance in spring (late March-April) and through the summer if rains are ample.
The base of flower is covered with the same felty white hairs as the stem.
As the flowers age, the petals become papery and cream-colored. A few seeds mature in the center of the flower head.