Chenopodium californicum

California goosefoot

Family: Chenopodiaceae · Type: perennial · Native

California goosefoot is a California native perennial found in southern North Coast, North Coast Ranges, central Sierra Nevada Foothills, Tehachapi, Central Valley, Central Western, Southwestern California, southern Sierra Nevada, and western Mojave Desert regions in generally open sites with sandy to clay soils at elevations below 2,000 meters. Flowering from March to September, this plant produces small greenish-white flowers in dense clusters less than 10 millimeters wide arranged in interrupted terminal spikes. Growing 20 to 90 centimeters tall with several stems arising from a stout, fleshy base, the plant develops decumbent to ascending branches. Its broadly triangular leaves measure 40 to 100 millimeters long, featuring coarsely toothed edges and a base that ranges from truncate to hastate or heart-shaped. The mature fruit is approximately 1.5 to 2 millimeters in diameter, with a wall tightly attached to the vertical seed.

Habitat: Generally open sites, sandy to clay soils

Bloom period: Mar-Sep

Elevation: < 2000 m

Bioregions: s NCo, NCoRO, NCoRI, c&amps SNF, Teh, GV, CW, SW, s SNE, w DMoj

California counties: Kern, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, Santa Clara, Riverside, Lake, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Napa, Ventura, Orange, Tulare, San Benito, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Contra Costa, Colusa, Inyo, Alameda, Solano, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, Fresno, Glenn, Yolo, Tehama, Sutter, Butte, Tuolumne, Marin, Sonoma, Merced

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