© Jack Bindernagel, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC) · iNaturalist
Overview
Uropappus is a genus in the daisy family (Asteraceae) represented mainly by silver puffs (Uropappus lindleyi), a slender annual herb of western North America. Plants grow 4-24 inches (10-60 cm) tall from a basal cluster of narrow, grass-like leaves, sending up one or more leafless flowering stalks. Each stalk bears a single head of pale yellow ray florets that open in the morning and often close by midday. After flowering the head expands into a rounded silvery puff of seeds, each crowned with a papery, notched scale tipped by a slender bristle, giving the genus its common name. The seeds disperse on the wind. Silver puffs grows in open grassland, scrub, desert flats, and disturbed slopes, germinating with winter rains and completing its life cycle by early summer. As a short-lived annual it produces a brief spring display and then dries away, persisting through its seed bank.
Native Range
Native to western North America, from British Columbia and the western United States south into Mexico, growing in grassland, chaparral, desert flats, and disturbed ground.Suggested Uses
Grown in wildflower meadows, rock and gravel gardens, and native plantings in dry-summer regions. Suited to restoration of grassland and desert margins where it reseeds itself.How to Identify
Appearance
Size & Dimensions
Height4" - 2'
Width/Spread3" - 8"
Bloom Information
Flowering occurs in spring, roughly March to May, with the timing set by winter rainfall. Each head opens in the morning and may close by midday. Silvery seed heads follow within days and release wind-borne seed before the plant dries.
Detailed Descriptions
Foliage Description
greenGrowing Conditions
Sun Requirements
Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily
• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight
• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight
• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight
Water & Climate
Water Needs
Drought Tolerance
Drought tolerant when established
Care & Maintenance
Care Guide
Silver puffs grows in full sun in dry, well-drained sandy, rocky, or loamy soils of low fertility. It needs cool-season moisture to germinate and flower and then sets seed as soils dry in early summer. As an annual it is grown from seed sown in autumn where it is to bloom, and it self-sows where soil stays open. It needs no feeding and little water once growing. Few pests affect it in its short season.Pruning
No pruning is needed for this annual. Plants are left to flower and set seed, then dry away naturally; seed heads may be sheared off if self-sowing is unwanted.Toxicity
Non-toxicPlanting Guide
Planting Methods & Timing
Planting Method
direct sow
Direct Sow Timing
Autumn in mild-winter, dry-summer regions
Days to Maturity
90–150 days
Plant Spacing
4 inches