Marshallia caespitosa Commonly known as Barbara's Buttons and Puffballs. A clump-forming perennial native to portions of the south-central United States. It can be found on calcareous glades and outcrops and in habitats with sandy soils. The dense flower heads of this aster family member are discoid. The numerous, tiny, white to pink-tinged disk florets are compacted into solitary, terminal, pincushion-like, dome-shaped flower heads (to 1" diameter) atop long, rigid, slender stems rising to 16" tall. Flowers somewhat resemble some of the cornflowers. Flowers bloom in spring. Narrow linear-lanceolate leaves (to 4" long) mostly appear in basal rosettes, with sparse stem leaves being much smaller. Easily grown in evenly moist to dry, well-drained soils in full sun to dappled shade. Tolerates some drought once established. Tolerant of most soil types as long as they are well draining. Will self seed in ideal conditions. Height: 1-1.5'Spread: 6"-1'Bloom: April-JuneLight: Full Sun-Dappled ShadeWater: Low-MediumZone: 5-8Origin: Texas, Southcentral U.S.
