Stats

Lifespan

10-25 yrs

Size

Medium

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Salt marsh

Range

North America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Toxins

Status

Common

About

This shrub grows in coastal marshes across North America and the Caribbean. Female plants produce thousands of white, feathery seeds that drift on the wind.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Asterales

Family

Asteraceae

Genus

Baccharis

Species

Baccharis halimifolia