Chaenactis is a genus of plants in the daisy family which are known generally as pincushions or dustymaidens. These wildflowers are native to western North America, especially the desert southwest of the United States. They are quite variable in appearance. They are generally aster-like in appearance with many disc florets in each head. There may be only disc florets, but sometimes there are also enlarged ray florets along the edges of the corolla. They may be white to yellow or pink.