Mount Hood pussypaws is a small, tough wildflower of dry, sunny ground, most at home high in the mountains. It grows from a thick, branched crown and a taproot, with a flat rosette of fleshy, spoon-shaped leaves held close to the ground. From the rosette, short stalks carry dense, rounded heads of tiny flowers. Papery sepals, white edged with pink, give each head a soft, fuzzy look that fits its name.
The flower stalks usually lie along the ground, spreading in a ring around the leaves, so a blooming plant can look like a small pink pinwheel up to about 15 cm across. The petals wither quickly, but the papery sepals hang on, so the heads stay colorful. Bees, butterflies, beetles and wasps visit the flowers, and the seeds that follow are shiny and black.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture lists this plant under the name Mt. Hood pussypaws, and the mountain is a good place to find it. Look on open sand and gravel, from forest openings up to bare alpine ground, especially around timberline. It blooms through the summer.
How to identify it
A low, mat-forming perennial with a rosette of fleshy, spoon-shaped leaves 1.5 to 5 cm long. Stalks 1 to 10 cm long, often lying flat, end in dense round heads up to 4 cm across. Each flower has two papery sepals, white with pink edges, and four short-lived pinkish to white petals.
Habitat
Dry, sandy or gravelly ground in full sun, from ponderosa pine openings to subalpine sandy flats and alpine slopes. On Mt. Hood, look for it on open sand and gravel near and above timberline.
Sightings in the forest
396 research-grade sightings in Mt. Hood National Forest on iNaturalist, most recently on October 9, 2026. See them on iNaturalist →