Around the disc is an involucre of modified leaves, the bracts, which in "Xerochrysum", as in most Gnaphalieae, are petal-like, stiff, and papery. Arranged in rows, these bracts curl over and enclose the florets, shielding them before flowering. They create the impression of a shiny and yellow corolla around the disc. The intermediate bracts are sometimes white, while the outer ones are paler and often streaked reddish or brown (a greater variety of colours are found in cultivars). These bracts are papery and dry, or 'scarious', with a low water content, unlike leaves or flower parts of other plants. They are made up of dead cells, which are unusual in that they have a thin primary and a thick secondary cell wall, a feature only found in sclerenchyma, or structural, cells, not cells of flowers or leaves.