Daisy fleabane

This annual or biennial plant is erect and 1-3' tall. It is unbranched along the lower half, while forming lateral stems above that are ascending. The central stem is light green to purplish green and longitudinally grooved along its sides. This stem often has spreading white hairs toward its base, while above these hairs become shorter and more appressed. The lateral stems are similar to the central stem above, except they are less grooved. Alternate leaves are up to 4" long and 16 mm. (2/3") across, becoming smaller in size and more sparse as they ascend the stems. The lowest leaves are oblanceolate in shape with long petioles, while the middle to upper leaves are elliptic to linear-elliptic in shape and they are either sessile or their petioles are short (less than ¼" in length). Some of the larger leaves have sparse coarse teeth along their outer margins. The upper leaf surface is medium green and hairless (or nearly so), while the lower leaf surface is light-medium green and short-pubescent along the central vein. The petioles, when they are present, are light green and more or less pubescent; the petioles of lower leaves are sometimes narrowly winged. The central stem and lateral stems terminate in cymes of flowerheads that collectively span up to 10" across for large plants. Individual cymes are dichotomously branched and somewhat flat-headed; as they mature, these cymes become more open and loose.