Another sand-dweller is the Dwarf Dandelion, Krigia cespitosa.
The flowers do look like miniature dandelions. They are closed in the morning and open on sunny afternoons.
Near the trees at the beginning of the walk are some unpleasant members of the Asteraceae. Swamp-weed, also called Marsh-elder (Iva annua) has small, wind- pollinated flowers with highly allergenic pollen. It is very common locally in the fall.
Western Ragweed, Ambrosia psilostachya, is another wind-pollinated composite. It's responsible for much of the fall hayfever problem.
The male flowers of ragweed are grouped in little hanging heads at
the
top of the plant; the female flowers are further down amongst the
leaves.
All the yellow structures are anthers, the part of the flower that
produces the pollen. Look at all of them! No wonder this plant makes
life
miserable for allergy sufferers.
Goldenrod (Solidago sp.), which is often blamed, is insect-pollinated and usually not a major allergen.
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