Senecio mohavensis, known by the common name Mojave ragwort, is a species of flowering plant in the aster family.[1]
The annual herb is native to the Mojave Desert in California, northwestern Arizona, and southwestern Nevada (southwestern United States); and to the Sonoran Desert in California and Arizona, and Baja California and Sonora (northwestern Mexico).[2]
It grows in sandy and rocky habitats, often in Creosote bush scrub.
Senecio mohavensis produces a single branching erect stem up to 30 or 40 centimeters in maximum height from a twisted taproot. It is mostly hairless and green to purple in color.
The leaves have lobed or toothed blades a few centimeters long, the lower on short petioles and those higher on the plant with wide bases that clasp the stem.
The inflorescence is a spreading array of several flower heads filled with yellow disc florets, typically numbering between 15 and 30.[3] Some heads have tiny ray florets that may be tucked out of view within the phyllaries. The phyllaries are typically green, hairless, mostly fused, and measure about a third of an inch. The bloom period is March to May, and the plant's toxicity is Minor Dermatitis.[4]