Paperflower

Psilostrophe cooperi

Round globe-like woody subshrub 1-2 ft. tall with brilliant yellow flowers becoming pale to translucent and papery with maturity, blooming February to September or year-round. Drought tolerant, adapted to well-drained sand and gravel soils on dry mesas, plains, slopes and arroyos in desert scrub, semidesert grasslands and pinyon-juniper woodlands, in both the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts; 1,000 to 6,000 ft. elevation. Often found in Creosote bush (Larrea tridentata) communities. Used in restoration, erosion control and as a copiously flowering accent in xeriscape landscaping. Highly aromatic, deterring some insect herbivory and toxic to livestock.