DYC

plural DYCs

1. abbreviationhumorousinitialismbiologyInitialism of damn (or damned) yellow composite: any hard-to-identify yellow-flowered member of the sunflower family (Compositae).

   At times, it seems as though all flowers are D. Y. C.'s, but these brash newcomers of all colors account for[…]

   1981, Kent Dannen, Donna Dannen, Rocky Mountain Wildflowers, page 29

   3 more examples

   Herbalist Michael Moore describes Arnica as a "DYC," or "damn yellow composite." For beginners studying flora, the yellow members of this family tend to cause confusion.

   1989, Janice J. Schofield, Richard W. Tyler, Discovering Wild Plants: Alaska, Western Canada, the Northwest, page 131

   Hymenoxys richardsonii, like H. acaulis, covers a very wide range and could possibly come into the category of "just another D.Y.C." (Damned Yellow Composite).

   2002, Graham Nicholls, Alpine Plants of North America, page 145

   The most common though sometimes difficult to tell apart yellow members of the sunflower family are arnicas, groundsels, goldenrods, and mountain-dandelions. There are so many confusing members of this family that some botanizers use the term DYC for "damn yellow composite."

   2008, James Luther Davis, The Northwest Nature Guide, page 205