Helianthus nuttallii

Helianthus nuttallii, or Nuttall's sunflower, is a species of sunflower native to northern, central, and western North America, from Newfoundland west to British Columbia, south to Missouri, New Mexico, and California.^[3]

Helianthus nuttallii
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Tribe:	Heliantheae
Genus:	Helianthus
Species:	H. nuttallii
Binomial name
Helianthus nuttallii Torr. & A.Gray
Synonyms[2]
Helianthus fascicularis Greene Helianthus parishii A.Gray, syn of subsp. parishii Helianthus rydbergii Britton, syn of subsp. rydbergii

Helianthus nuttallii is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 50–400 cm (20-160 inches) tall. The leaves are opposite on the lower part of the stem, alternate higher up, narrow lanceolate, 8–20 cm (3.2-8.0 inches) long and 6–30 mm wide, with a rough texture. The flowers are yellow, produced in a flowerhead approximately 9 cm (3.6 inches) diameter with 10–20 ray florets and at least 60 disc florets; each stem bears one to a few flowerheads.^[4][5]

Subspecies of Helianthus nuttallii include:^[2][3][4]

• Helianthus nuttallii subsp. nuttallii - Canada, western United States.^[6] is a subspecies of Helianthus nuttallii in the genus Helianthus in the family Asteraceae.^[6] H. nuttallii subsp. nuttallii is considered by some to be a synonym for H. nuttallii.^[7] However, others argue that it is distinct from the species.^[6]
• Helianthus nuttallii subsp. parishii (A.Gray) Heiser - (Los Angeles sunflower). Southern California, endemic. The subspecies is presumed to be extinct since 1937.^[8]
• Helianthus nuttallii subsp. rydbergii (Britton) R. Long. - Central Canada, interior northwestern United States