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Tarweed with 5-8 yellow petals (some fell off) on different parts of the plant growing in a dry, sandy, seasonal stream bed. Plant is 5-6 inches tall with a strong central axis. Sticky-glandular buds have a pleasant fruity smell.

San Diego Tarweed (Deinandra paniculata) Synonyms: Grassland Tarweed, Deinandra increscens ssp. increscens, Hemizonia increscens increscens and Paniculate Tarplant (Calflora)
Conservation Status: Vulnerable. 4.2 in California, US (CNPS).
Native, annual, sticky, pleasantly fragrant plant in the Asteraceae family that grows 30-90 cm (up to 35 inches) tall in a coastal grasslands and foothills. Stems are often red. The typically 8 ray flowers are yellow. 11-32 disk flowers have black anthers. Some say Deinandra paniculata smells pleasantly fruity and floral, whereas Deinandra corymbosa, which it closely resembles, smells unpleasant and vinegary. Peak bloom time: July-October.

Good Discussions about the Deinandra paniculata in Monterey County (at Ft Ord National Monument)
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/61908019
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/131527957
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/134368531
Other confirmed obs. https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/135879890
Another San Diego Tarweed I saw in Toro County Park: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/139381845
Good observation by Jon Rebman including a nice shot of the pappus (last photo) https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/120703715

Per Flora of North America: Deinandra paniculata "phenology: Flowering May–Nov. Habitat: Grasslands, openings in chaparral and woodlands, disturbed sites, often sandy soils. Elevation: 10–800 m. Annuals, 10–80(–150) cm. Stems ± solid. Leaves: (basal rosettes present at flowering in South Coast Ranges) proximal blades pinnatifid to toothed, faces hispid-hirsute and sometimes stipitate-glandular. Heads in paniculiform arrays. Bracts subtending heads usually overlapping proximal 0–1/2 of each involucre. Phyllaries ± evenly stipitate-glandular, including margins and apices, often with some non-glandular, non-pustule-based hairs as well. Paleae in 1 series. Ray florets (7–)8(–10); laminae deep yellow, 3–5(–6) mm. Disc florets 8–14(–15), all or mostly functionally staminate; anthers reddish to dark purple. Pappi of 6–12 oblong, fimbriate scales 1–2 mm. 2n = 24."
Flora of North America http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Deinandra_paniculata and http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Main_Page

Per Jepson eFlora: "Ray Flower: (7)8(10); corolla deep yellow, ray 3--7.5 mm. Disk Flower: 8--14(15), all or mostly staminate; anthers +- red to dark purple."
Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=80177
Jepson Key to Deinandra https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_keys.php?key=77577

8 records on CalFlora in Monterey County as of 10/6/23. Calfora calls it Paniculate Tarplant:
https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=o#srch=t&taxon=Deinandra+paniculata&cols=b&cc=MNT&chk=t&incobs=f&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 78-79.
(species listed as Grassland Tarweed, Deinandra increscens ssp. increscens)

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 39.
(species listed as Grassland Tarweed, Deinandra increscens ssp. increscens)

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 292.
(species listed as Grassland Tarweed, Deinandra increscens ssp. increscens)

GBIF: https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/3947745166
(Global Biodiversity Information Facility)

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/index/
(species not listed)

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NOT Deinandra corymbosa due to my specimen has up to 8 ray flowers, not 14–35 ray flowers

Coastal Tarweed (Deinandra corymbosa) Native, endemic in California, common, annual, glandular-sticky Deinandra that grows 0.6--10 dm (2.5-39 inches) tall in maritime chaparral, grassland, openings in scrub or woodland, sand dunes, and in disturbed soils. Upper leaves are linear and crowded below the inflorescence while the lower leaves are pinnately-lobed. Buds are sticky and spherical. Yellow flower heads are sticky-glandular, flat-topped, with 15–35 ray flowers, 24–70 disk flowers, and a shallow involucre. Anthers are red to dark purple. Peak bloom time: May-November. It is a sticky and strongly scented Tarweed. Some say the vinegary smell is unpleasant compared to the sweet, pleasantly scented San Diego Tarweed (Deinandra paniculata) that also grows nearby.

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 39.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=77598

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 78-79.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p.291.

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/asteraceae-sunflower2a/

5-minute video of Fort Ord Flora and Fauna: https://fortordcleanup.com/archives/2020/natural-treasures-of-fort-ord-90-amazing-photographs/

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NOT

Kellogg's Tarweed (Deinandra kelloggii) Anthers are yellow, not red to dark purple like Coastal Tarweed. (D. corymbosa). Deinandra kelloggii usually has 5 Ray flowers and 6 disk flowers. The 5 bright yellow petals each have 3 rounded "teeth." Peak bloom time: May-November. It grows in sandy or clay soils, grassland, openings in scrub or woodland, and disturbed sites. A.k.a. Kellogg's Spikeweed or Kellogg's Tarweed, it is a North American species of plant in the tarweed tribe within the (sunflower family). It is native to southern and central California (from Sonoma and Calaveras Counties south to San Diego County), Arizona (Pima County) and Baja California. Other Names: Hemizonia kelloggii.

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp.78-79.

Jepson's eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=79196

4 records of it in Monterey County on Calflora https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Deinandra+kelloggii&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=MNT

This is the most beautiful this field of pussypaws has ever been in the ~20 years I've seen it. Normally, gophers take out a large number of plants, but this year, so far, the number of predated plants in this particular field is minimal. In addition, the number of plants is vastly increased due to the good precipitation this year.

It has finally become clear to me that these plants are effectively annuals here. Year after year, the gophers eventually eat all the plants, including of course, the roots. I always wondered how the plants could come back after that. If they are functionally annuals, coming back from the seed bank, that solves that mystery, and accounts for the vastly increased number of plants this year.

Other similar areas nearby have not been so fortunate this year, and you can see where the gophers have taken out the plants in those areas.