Atriplex pacifica

South coast saltscale, South Coast Saltscale

Family: Chenopodiaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

South coast saltscale is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native annual found in southern California coastal and Channel Islands bioregions in coastal bluff scrub and dune habitats at elevations below 300 meters. Flowering from March to October, this plant produces gray-green to white flowers with distinctive scaly texture. Growing in a prostrate to decumbent form 10 to 40 centimeters wide, it spreads in mat-like patches with ascending branches. Its leaves are elliptic to oblanceolate, 4 to 18 millimeters long, with gray to white scales on the underside and a green upper surface. The plant produces small wedge-shaped fruit bracts that are fused at the base and minutely toothed, enclosing tiny brown seeds.

Habitat: Coastal bluff scrub, dunes

Bloom period: Mar-Oct

Elevation: < 300 m

Bioregions: SCo, ChI

California counties: Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Benito

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.