​Curlycup Gumweed, Resinweed, Curlytop Gumweed,Grindelia squarrosa,Sunflower Family (Asteraceae)

Found at roadsides and in disturbed soil
Seen blooming in September by Highway 554

Gumweeds ooze a whitish, viscous, resinous fluid from their flower buds so are very recognizable. Curlycup Gumweed grows to two feet high in a bushy shape with green or whitish stems.  Leaves are oblong and toothed with no stalks. Also very recognizable are the 5 to 6 rows of sticky, hooked bracts around the flower head. Petals may or may not be present. Gumweeds have been used for many medicinal purposes by Native Americans, including as a wash for poison oak rashes and burns and for pulmonary troubles. The resinous sap that covers the leaves has been used as a substitute for chewing gum. Green and yellow dyes can be obtained from the yellow flowering heads and pods. Grindelias are still used for asthma and bronchitis, and in common cough remedies in homeopathic medicine. Source.

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