This picture is of groundsel tree (or bush). It is a shrub that may become as tall as 15 feet and blooms this time of year. I typically see it when driving past waste places or cut over woods. It blooms this time of year and is a real standout as not many other trees bloom in November and December. It is a dioecious plant, which means that male and female flowers usually appear on different plants instead of having both structures in one flower. They produce zillions of seed as you can imagine from this plant in flower. The seed have filaments that cause it to be buoyant and they float around like dandelion fluff, hence their wide distribution. They take 2 years to reach flowering size, but I recommend enjoying them from some other vantage point than your own yard, unless you want to grow nothing else. They are said to be good deer browse, but to me that seems doubtful as the leaves are poisonous to cattle.
I have made flower arrangements using groundsel and thought it was very striking. It lasted several days.
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