As a nature photographer, it's nearly impossible to stop taking pictures of this flower, aptly named "Showy Tarweed"! The petals unroll from the center and are very interesting to look at. The fuzzy hairs and sticky resin balls are very pretty, and these blossoms simply glow in the afternoon sun!

Showy Tarweed is found all over the Pacific Northwest and you'll notice that some flowers have maroon "wheels" in the center, while others have none. The seeds of this flower are like strawberry seeds, which are actually tiny fruit nuts called "achenes ", which have tiny seeds on them! Native Americans gathered these as one of their staple foods; the harvested achenes were toasted or ground into flour.

If you would like to know more about this flower, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: Showy Tarweed (Madia elegans)