Camelina microcarpa

False flax

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

False flax is a naturalized annual found in the California Floristic Province and Modoc Plateau in fields, roadsides, and slopes at elevations below 1,800 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces pale yellow flowers approximately 3 to 4 millimeters long with delicate petals. Growing with stems 20 to 80 centimeters tall, the plant can be simple or branched toward the top and is densely covered in stiff hairs. Its leaves are lanceolate to oblong with distinctive basal lobes, giving the plant a unique structural appearance. The small pear-shaped fruit measures 3.5 to 5 millimeters long with a beak-like style.

Habitat: Fields, roadsides, slopes

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: < 1800 m

Bioregions: CA-FP, MP

California counties: Modoc, Siskiyou, Los Angeles, Plumas, Monterey, Kern, Nevada, Santa Barbara, Placer, Lassen, Butte, Alameda, Ventura, San Diego, Sierra, Shasta, Orange

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