E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

General:
Annual herb from a taproot; stems simple or branched, spreading stiff-hairy, 20-80 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal or lower leaves soon deciduous; stem leaves linear to oblong or lanceolate, up to 15 cm long and 2 cm wide, alternate, entire.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of terminal, flat-topped flower clusters; petals orange to orange-yellow, fused basally into a tube 7-11 mm long that spreads to 5 free lobes; calyx lobes 5, silky-hairy, also with some longer, stiff hairs.

Fruits:
Nutlets 4, clustered together, 2.5-4 mm long, egg-shaped, wrinkled, pointed, dull, greenish or grey to brown or black.

Notes:
The differences (corolla size and color) between this species and A. menziesii are slight and some taxonomists (i.e., Ganders [1993]) treat them at the varietal level.