Asteraceae

Gaillardia aristata

Blanket Flower

Clump of erect stems. Plant rough-haired throughout. Leaves on stem alternate, oblong, entire to pinnately lobed; lower leaves 2–6 in. long, decreasing in size upward. Single flower head tops stem. Ray flowers 6–16, 1 in. long, 3-lobed at tip, yellow, usually purple at base, creating ring around purplish-woolly central dome of many red or brownish disk flowers. Grows in roadside ditches, meadows, grasslands, below 6500 ft. Commonly used garden plant with many developed color forms.

• Rarity: Common
• Flowering Time: All Spring And Summer
• Life Cycle: Perennial
• Height: 1--3 feet
• Habitat: Meadow, Shrub-Steppe
• Found In: N Cascades Np
• Native: Yes