A perennial sub-shrub of the Asteraceae family, Celmisia walkeri is endemic to the South Island of New Zealand, where it occupies alpine rockeries, fellfields, and stable screes on well-drained substrates, at altitudes generally between 1,000 and 1,800 meters.
It forms a dense, branched cushion, 10 to 20 centimeters high, with persistent woody stems bearing tight terminal rosettes of small, bright green, slightly ciliated lanceolate leaves on the margins. Its foliage is remarkably green and less tomentose compared to most species of the genus, giving it a fresher and less silvery appearance, immediately distinctive among rockery Celmisia.
The flower heads are borne on erect, leafy, slightly glandular peduncles. The ligules are white, numerous and narrow, arranged in generous rays around a well-defined bright yellow disc, forming flowers of particular clarity and brightness. The flower buds have a visibly glandular-pubescent involucre.
In its natural habitat, flowering extends from December to February. In cultivation under our latitudes, it generally occurs in June-July.
It requires excellent drainage, full sun exposure, and protection from stagnant winter moisture. Its compact habit and unusual green foliage make it a particularly interesting species for the alpine rockery.