Science is Fun Fridays!
Yareta, or llareta, grows in the Puna grasslands of the Andes in Peru, Bolivia, northern Chile and western Argentina.
It is an evergreen perennial that is dry and dense, and was traditionally used for burning. The plant grows close to the ground to retain as much heat as possible and to resist the wind. The stems are so dense that they can take the weight of a human.
The plant only grows about 1.5cm a year, so a large blob growing on rocks can be thousands of years old, and many are estimated to be over 3,000 years old. They are a protected species, are are considered endangered.
Flowers may be yellow or lavender. The waxy leaves help prevent moisture loss.
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