Crepis occidentalis


Crepis occidentalis is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names western hawksbeard, or largeflower hawksbeard. It is native to western Canada and the western United States.
Crepis occidentalis grows in many types of habitat. It is a perennial herb growing a grayish woolly branching stem to about 40 centimeters in height from a deep taproot. The woolly, toothed leaves are up to 30 centimeters long at the base of the plant. The inflorescence produces several clusters of flower heads with hairy, often glandular phyllaries and many yellow ray florets but no disc florets. The fruit is a ribbed achene with a frilly pappus at the tip.
;SubspeciesCrepis occidentalis subsp. conjuncta Babcock & Stebbins – California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Washington, WyomingCrepis occidentalis subsp. costata Babc. & Stebbins – British Columbia, Saskatchewan, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, WyomingCrepis occidentalis subsp. occidentalisAlberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, New Mexico, Nevada, South Dakota, Utah, Washington., WyomingCrepis occidentalis subsp. pumila Babc. & Stebbins – British Columbia; California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington

Cultivation

Western hawksbeard is occasionally grown by wildflower gardeners for its large deep yellow blooms. The taproot cannot be divided for successful propagation and therefore it is planted from seed when cultivated. The author Claude A. Barr was of the opinion that this species is the most attractive in the genus Crepis and that all the others are, "for the birds."