Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa
Carrizo fiddleneck, Carrizo Fiddleneck
(c) Matt Lavin, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Boraginaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa (Carrizo fiddleneck) is a native California herb in the Boraginaceae family, recognized by dense brown calyx hairs and larger orange flowers.
Carrizo fiddleneck is a California native annual found in northern Coast Ranges, Tehachapi, southwestern San Joaquin Valley, San Francisco Bay Area, southern Coast Ranges, western Transverse Ranges, and western Mojave Desert in sandy or shaly soils at elevations of 50 to 1,950 meters. Flowering from March to June, this plant produces orange flowers with dense brown-hairy calyxes, blossoms 12 to 16 millimeters long with a corolla limb 6 to 10 millimeters wide. Growing with slender branching stems that spread across the ground, it forms delicate, tangled clusters. Its leaves are narrow and lance-shaped, arranged alternately along the stem, typically covered in fine, bristly hairs. The fruit develops as small, tessellated nutlets characteristic of the fiddleneck genus.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 11 sympatric species; dense brown calyx hairs and larger orange flowers help distinguish
Habitat and range
Habitat: Sandy or shaly soils
Elevation: 50-1950 m
California counties: Kern, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, San Benito, Merced, Santa Barbara, Fresno, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Alameda, Contra Costa, Colusa, Siskiyou, San Mateo, Kings, Yolo, Riverside
Bloom period
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa blooms Mar-Jun.
How to tell it apart
vs Phacelia: Amsinckia always has orange or yellow flowers; Phacelia flowers are blue, purple, or white.; vs Plantago: Amsinckia has coiled orange flower clusters; Plantago has dense spikes with tiny white-brown flowers.; vs Helminthotheca: Amsinckia has bristly stems but simple leaves; Helminthotheca leaves are prickly-bumpy textured.; vs Echium: Amsinckia flowers are orange-yellow; Echium flowers are blue-purple and distinctly lopsided.; vs Camissoniopsis: Amsinckia has coiled flower clusters; Camissoniopsis has 4-petaled evening primrose flowers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa native to California?
Yes. Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa bloom?
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa blooms Mar-Jun.
Where in California does Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa grow?
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa occurs in Kern, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, San Benito, Merced, Santa Barbara, Fresno, Los Angeles and other counties, at elevations of 50-1950 m.
What plant family does Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa belong to?
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa is in the Boraginaceae family, genus Amsinckia.
What habitat does Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa grow in?
Amsinckia tessellata var. gloriosa grows in Sandy or shaly soils.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Amsinckia tessellata var. tessellata — Desert fiddleneck
- Amsinckia vernicosa — Waxy fiddleneck
- Amsinckia douglasiana — Douglas's fiddleneck
- Amsinckia eastwoodiae — Eastwood's fiddleneck
- Amsinckia furcata — Forked fiddleneck
- Amsinckia grandiflora — Large-flowered fiddleneck
- Amsinckiopsis kingii — Great basin popcornflower
- Amsinckiopsis kingii var. harknessii — Northern great basin popcornflower
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.