Skeletonleaf Goldeneye

Small yellow flowers float above a tangle of narrow green leaves in this photograph from The Living Desert in Palm Desert. The combination is consistent with skeletonleaf goldeneye, a branching shrub also known as resinbush. Mark Miller photographed it on October 15, 2026.

At a glance

• Likely botanical identification: Viguiera stenoloba
• Plant family: Asteraceae, the daisy family
• Plant type: Perennial shrub
• Typical size: About 2–4 feet tall and wide
• Local setting: Cultivated garden planting; likely a species from the Chihuahuan Desert region
• Look for: Deeply divided, narrow leaves and yellow flower heads on slender, mostly leafless stalks

Read the leaves as well as the flowers

Many desert plants produce yellow daisies. Here, the threadlike divisions of the leaves and the long flower stalks provide more useful clues than flower color alone. Compare that fine foliage with the broad, silvery leaves of brittlebush.

In the garden

Native to parts of the Chihuahuan Desert region, skeletonleaf goldeneye favors sun and well-drained ground. Its summer and fall flowers can support visiting pollinators. Leave space for a branching, rounded shrub rather than treating it as a small bedding flower.

Identification note

This identification is provisional. The photograph shows features consistent with skeletonleaf goldeneye, but a readable plant label and closer leaf details would help confirm the exact species. It is presented here as a cultivated observation from The Living Desert.

Explore more

• Flora of the Coachella Valley
• Brittlebush
• Common sunflower

Sources

• Native Plant Society of Texas: Skeletonleaf goldeneye

Photography © Mark Miller, October 15, 2026. Botanical source checked October 15, 2026.