Antennaria rosea

Antennaria rosea is a plant of many habitats, from dry to wet climates and low elevation to very high. It is a very morphologically diverse species; individuals can look very different. It is polyploid and exhibits apomixis; most all the plants are female and they reproduce asexually.

This herbaceous perennial grows to a height of 10 and 40 centimeters. It has a network of short stolons by which it spreads, its method of vegetative reproduction. It forms a basal patch of woolly grayish leaves 1 to 4 centimeters long. The inflorescence contains several flower heads in a cluster. Each head is lined with wide, pointed phyllaries which are often rose in color, the trait that gives the species its name, but they may also be white, yellowish, or brownish. The species is dioecious, but since most of the individuals are female, most bear flower heads containing pistillate flowers. The fruit is an achenewith a body less than 2 millimeters long and a pappus which may be 6 or 7 millimeters long. The plant often produces fertile seeds, but most individuals in most populations are clones. Plants are sometimes fertilized with pollen from other Antennaria species, which may bring new genes into an A. rosea population, increasing the genetic diversityamongst the clones.