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Asteraceae (Thistles, Asters and Daisies) 72 images Created 29 Apr 2013

Can you imagine spring or summer day without our beloved daisies, sunflowers, asters, zinnias, dahlias, chrysanthemums, heleniums and thistles? North America is home to a massive number of native, wild species of these seasonal beauties!
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  • The prairie coneflower is a very beautiful member of the daisy family and is found nearly all across North America except Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Kentucky, Virginia and Northeastern United States and Canada and can be found in open prairies and along roadsides. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. The colors of the petals can vary from pure yellow to reddish-brown, or any variation of these colors. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. These were found growing in an open prairie in rural Cibola County in New Mexico, about an hour west of Albuquerque.
    Prairie Coneflower
  • Indian Blankets growing in Bokeelia on Pine Island, Lee County, Fl. These are absolutely beautiful when seen in huge patches in the grass!
    Indian Blanketflowers
  • Somewhat common in the western half of North America, the arrowleaf balsamroot is a large and unmistakably beautiful and showy member of the sunflower family that is found in a variety of habitats from desert scrub and grasslands to mountain forests. They are often eaten by elk and deer, and were historically eaten by Native American tribes as raw or steamed greens, or as a flour made from the dried and pounded seeds. Even the long taproot is edible. This one was found growing in the sides of many canyons and ravines of the Eastern Cascades Mountains, just south of Ellensburg, Washington.
    Arrowleaf Balsamroot
  • Also known as the orange mountain dandelion, this native relative to the (non-native) common dandelion is found across most of Western Canada and the United States in mountain valleys and subalpine altitudes. The leaves are edible and can be used for fermented beverages! This one was found and photographed in the mountains above Aspen, Colorado in Pitkin County on a hot summer day.
    Orange Agoseris
  • The intensely and wildly vibrant blue cornflower is found throughout most of North America, but is actually native to Europe, and is only naturalized here. Oddly enough, it is becoming rare and has disappeared completely from many places where it once flourished in the Old World. This one was photographed next to the Columbia River on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge.
    Cornflower
  • This wonderfully attractive one-inch, desert-loving daisy is found throughout much of the American Southwest where it blooms year-round as long as it doesn't come in contact with frost. Best seen in the morning hours, this local member of the aster family begins to droop in the midday heat. Want to know something amazing about this particular flower? It smells just like chocolate! These were photographed literally at the edge of town in Van Horn, West Texas - where civilization meets the harsh and brutal Chihuahuan Desert.
    Chocolate Daisy
  • This small daisy is found at lower elevations in the drier, rocky parts of Central and Eastern Washington and Oregon. It is closely related to other similar aster species found in the same region but at higher elevations. This one was found with many others growing from a crack in a basalt canyon rock wall outside of Naches, Washington just west of Yakima.
    Dwarf Golden Daisy
  • This tiny daisy grows in many of the hottest, most arid deserts of the American Southwest in sand, gravel and scattered rocks. Easily identified by both it's dimunitative size and choice of habitat, close inspection of the foliage reveals a very wooly, hairy hovering of silvery hairs on the leaves and stem. This was one of many found in an open area in the Mojave Desert in Southern California.
    Wallace's Woolly Daisy
  • Springtime helenium growing on the side of a highway in the Apalachicola National Forest.
    Springtime Helenium
  • Yellow salsify is a non-native, European import and relative to chicory commonly found in the drier parts of the North America, excluding much of the American Southeast. This one was photographed near the banks of the Tieton River, just south of Naches, Washington.
    Yellow Salsify
  • This small, compact member of the aster and daisy family is found at very high elevations in the mountains of Western North America, often near or at the snow line. They prefer wet meadows, and are often found growing in great profusion along with many other alpine/subalpine wildflowers during their brief, showy blooming period. This one was photographed on a  rainy late summer day within sight of Mount Rainier's incredible glaciers near the tree line.
    Subalpine Daisy
  • The incredibly spiky purple thistle is a very common and very tall wildflower seen in many disturbed areas in all of Florida. It is a great food source for many types of butterflies.
    Purple Thistle
  • Everglades daisy photographed in the dry season of the Big Cypress National Preserve. Look for them in large numbers in the spring!
    Everglades Daisy
  • Bull thistle (also known as spear thistle) is another invasive thistle that has spread across most of North America and is most frequently found in disturbed habitats. The benefit of this sharp and prickly, hard to eradicate weed is that it is a very good source of food and nectar for bees, butterflies, birds amd insects.
    Bull Thistle
  • The prairie coneflower is a very beautiful member of the daisy family and is found nearly all across North America except Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Kentucky, Virginia and Northeastern United States and Canada and can be found in open prairies and along roadsides. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. The colors of the petals can vary from pure yellow to reddish-brown, or any variation of these colors. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. These were found growing in an open prairie in rural Cibola County in New Mexico, about an hour west of Albuquerque.
    Prairie Coneflower
  • This wonderfully attractive one-inch, desert-loving daisy is found throughout much of the American Southwest where it blooms year-round as long as it doesn't come in contact with frost. Best seen in the morning hours, this local member of the aster family begins to droop in the midday heat. Want to know something amazing about this particular flower? It smells just like chocolate! These were photographed in the Chihuahuan Desert in rural Socorro County, New Mexico while I was searching to horned lizards.
    Chocolate Daisy
  • These large and beautiful wildflowers can sometimes be seen in large patches on the side of the highways in the Apalachicola National Forest.
    Stoke's Aster
  • Native to Europe, this strikingly beautiful blue wildflower is now found growing wild all across North America and is a very important food for livestock, and as a coffee substitute or coffee-additive. Anyone familiar with some of the wonderful coffees from the New Orleans area will be very familiar with chicory coffee, which is very similar with a somewhat nutty taste, that is made from the roasted and ground roots. This one was found growing wild in at the edge of a field in Northern Arkansas.
    Chicory
  • The prairie coneflower is a very beautiful member of the daisy family and is found nearly all across North America except Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Kentucky, Virginia and Northeastern United States and Canada and can be found in open prairies and along roadsides. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. The colors of the petals can vary from pure yellow to reddish-brown, or any variation of these colors. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. These were found growing in an open prairie in rural Cibola County in New Mexico, about an hour west of Albuquerque.
    Prairie Coneflower with Incoming Storm
  • Somewhat common in the western half of North America, the arrowleaf balsamroot is a large and unmistakably beautiful and showy member of the sunflower family that is found in a variety of habitats from desert scrub and grasslands to mountain forests. They are often eaten by elk and deer, and were historically eaten by Native American tribes as raw or steamed greens, or as a flour made from the dried and pounded seeds. Even the long taproot is edible. This one was found growing in the sides of many canyons and ravines of the Eastern Cascades Mountains, just south of Ellensburg, Washington.
    Arrowleaf Balsamroot
  • Common Yarrow is one of the most common members of the aster family in all of the northern hemisphere. This one was photographed up close in the desert scrub in the Yakima, Washington area.
    Common Yarrow
  • Carolina desertchicory growing in the Goethe State Forest in Levy County, Florida.
    Desert Chicory
  • Possibly one of the most common wildflowers in the Northern Hemisphere, the aptly named common yarrow is found in all of North America (excluding some Caribbean islands), and much of Europe and Asia. It has been used for centuries and perhaps millennia as an herbal medicine for stopping blood flow from wounds and nosebleeds. It is found from low to high elevations, and from very wet to very dry locations throughout its range, making it perfectly adapted for life from the Arctic to all but the hottest and driest of deserts.
    Common Yarrow
  • Musk thistle is a very spiky, invasive species from Eurasia and has now become a noxious weed throughout most of the world. This one was photographed in Logan County just outside of Sterling, Colorado.
    Musk Thistle
  • The prairie coneflower is a very beautiful member of the daisy family and is found nearly all across North America except Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Kentucky, Virginia and Northeastern United States and Canada and can be found in open prairies and along roadsides. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. The colors of the petals can vary from pure yellow to reddish-brown, or any variation of these colors. Historically, it has been used as by Native Americans as a cold infusion to treat fever, as an emetic to induce vomiting, and even as an aid to wean nursing babies. These were found growing in an open prairie in rural Cibola County in New Mexico, about an hour west of Albuquerque.
    Prairie Coneflower
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