Asteraceae: Balsamorhiza sagittata

Balsamorhiza sagittata is a perennial herb growing from a deep taproot with stems arising from a branching crown and reaching 80 cm in height. The foliage is covered with silvery hairs, often making the plant appear and feel velvety. The silvery-gray simple basal leaves are petiolate, arrowhead shaped, with blades 20-40 cm long and the margins are entire. The cauline leaves are linear to narrowly oval in shape, smaller and coated in fine to rough hairs, especially on the undersides. The inflorescence consists of one or more heads, usually solitary on each stem. Each head is surrounded by an involucre of 2-4 series of bracts and the receptacle is broadly convex. There are 13-25 yellow ray flowers with ligules 2-4 cm long surrounding a center with many yellow disk flowers. The fruit is a roughly four-sided achene, 7-8 mm long lacking a pappus. Arrowhead balsamroot blooms from May to July on open hillsides and in valleys of western South Dakota.