Castilleja nana
Dwarf alpine indian paintbrush
Family: Orobanchaceae · Type: perennial · Native
Dwarf alpine indian paintbrush is a California native perennial found in the Sierra Nevada and White and Inyo Mountains in dry, alpine barrens at elevations of 2,400 to 4,200 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces pale yellow flowers with purple blotches, 15 to 20 millimeters long, with a distinctive 4 to 6 millimeter beak. Growing 5 to 25 centimeters tall with spreading green or purplish stems that are hairy, it forms a low-profile alpine plant. Its lance-linear leaves range from 10 to 35 millimeters long, with 0 to 5 lobes, supporting yellow-green or purple-tinged bracts with acuminate edges. The fruit is 8 to 12 millimeters long, with seeds featuring a distinctive ladder-like textured coat.
Habitat: Dry, +- alpine barrens
Bloom period: Jul-Aug
Elevation: 2400-4200 m
Bioregions: SNH, W&I.
California counties: Mono, Fresno, Tuolumne, Tulare, Alpine, Nevada, El Dorado, Mariposa, Sierra, Madera, Inyo, Placer
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.