[4][5] It has a wide distribution in coastal areas of South Africa, extending from Namaqualand to Cape Point and as far as KwaZulu-Natal.

[6] Arctotheca calendula is a squat perennial or annual which grows in rosettes and sends out stolons and can spread across the ground quickly.

Hairy stems bear daisy-like flowers with small yellow petals that sometimes have a green or purple tint surrounded by white or yellow ray petals extending further out from the flower centers.

Seed-bearing plants are most likely to become weedy, taking hold most easily in bare or sparsely vegetated soil or disturbed areas.

[7] Arctotheca calendula is naturalized in California,[8][9] Spain,[10][11] Portugal, Italy,[12] Australia,[13][14] New Zealand,[15] and Chile,[16] and considered a noxious weed in some of those places.