# straggler daisy

*Calyptocarpus vialis*

When repeatedly mowed, this clever plant adapts by blooming much closer to the soil, sometimes flowering at heights of less than an inch.

- **Taxonomy:** Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Asterales › Asteraceae › Calyptocarpus
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** urban
- **Habitat:** Lawns, parks, disturbed soils, shaded woodland edges, and roadsides.
- **Diet:** Autotrophic (produces energy via photosynthesis using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide).
- **Range:** Southern United States, Mexico, Central America, Caribbean
- **Size:** Creeping groundcover growing 3 to 12 inches (8 to 30 cm) tall, spreading several feet wide.
- **Lifespan:** Perennial (indefinite lifespan through vegetative spreading).
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Widespread chemical herbicide application in manicured lawns and severe, multi-year droughts.
- **Safe to approach?:** This plant is entirely harmless and safe to touch. It makes an excellent, eco-friendly native lawn alternative that tolerates heavy foot traffic. No special precautions are needed.

## About

Calyptocarpus vialis is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family, Asteraceae. Common names for C. vialis include straggler daisy , horseherb , lawnflower , and creeping Cinderella-weed . It is native to the southern United States, Mexico, Belize, Venezuela, and the Caribbean. It has also been introduced to Argentina, Hawaii, India, Java, Australia, and Taiwan. It is one of only three species in the genus Calyptocarpus .

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/47934265-8278-4250-8a28-4725a8a5d51a
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/84405
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calyptocarpus vialis
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/65071471/medium.jpeg (葉子, CC0, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.