Chaenactis santolinoides
Santolina pincushion, Santolina Pincushion
no rights reserved · CC0
Family: Asteraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Chaenactis santolinoides (Santolina pincushion) is a native California herb in the Asteraceae family, recognized by bottle-brush leaves and scapose heads.
Santolina pincushion is a native perennial herb found in southern Sierra Nevada, Tehachapi Mountains, southern Coast Ranges, and Transverse Ranges on open sandy to rocky ridges and talus slopes at elevations of 1,500 to 2,900 meters. Flowering from May to August, this plant produces white to pale pink flowers in small, scapose heads about 1 to 2 centimeters long. Growing as a tufted or mat-like plant 10 to 25 centimeters tall with generally 5 to 15 stems, it has a distinctive woolly appearance with white to gray proximal hairs. Its basal leaves are persistent and intricately structured, with 10 to 18 pairs of overlapping lobes that are cylindric to fusiform, with curled and twisted tips. The plant forms dense, compact clusters with leaves that have distinctive gland-pitted surfaces beneath delicate hairs.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 13 sympatric species; key features are bottle-brush leaves and scapose heads
Habitat and range
Habitat: Open sandy to rocky ridges, talus, scree, road cuts
Elevation: (1100)1500-2900 m
Bloom period
Chaenactis santolinoides blooms May-Aug.
How to tell it apart
vs Eriophyllum: Eriophyllum has obvious yellow ray flowers; Chaenactis completely lacks rays; vs Lasthenia: Lasthenia has bright yellow rays; Chaenactis rayless with white/purple tubular flowers only; vs Malacothrix: Malacothrix has all strap-shaped flowers and milky sap; Chaenactis all tubular, clear sap; vs Eriogonum: Eriogonum flowers have 6 segments in ball-like clusters; Chaenactis typical composite heads; vs Uropappus: Uropappus has all strap-shaped yellow flowers; Chaenactis all tubular white/purple flowers
Frequently asked questions
Is Chaenactis santolinoides native to California?
Yes. Chaenactis santolinoides is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Chaenactis santolinoides bloom?
Chaenactis santolinoides blooms May-Aug.
What plant family does Chaenactis santolinoides belong to?
Chaenactis santolinoides is in the Asteraceae family, genus Chaenactis.
What habitat does Chaenactis santolinoides grow in?
Chaenactis santolinoides grows in Open sandy to rocky ridges, talus, scree, road cuts.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
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.