Helianthus ciliaris is a perennial herbaceous plant that can grow from 1.3-2.3 ft. (40-70 cm) tall. The stems are blue-green to gray-green in color and can be upright to recumbent. H. ciliaris is native to Arizona, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Mexico.
Foliage
The mostly opposite leaves are cauline, sessile and veined. They are linear to lanceolate and from 1.2-3.0 x 0.2-0.9 in. (3-7.5 x 0.5-2.2 cm) long by wide.
Flowers
The flowers are composites. The ray flowers are yellow while the disk flowers are reddish to purple-brown in color.
Fruit
The fruits are glabrous cypselae containing a single seed. Seeds are smooth and hairless, 0.12-0.14 in. (3-3.5 mm) long. H. ciliaris also readily reproduces vegetatively by rhizomes.
Ecological Threat
H. ciliaris grows along roadsides, ditches, cultivated fields and open drainage areas. It can spread aggressively, especially in cultivated fields. The creeping rhizomes of H. ciliaris allow it to form extensive colonies.