Chenopodium simplex
Large-seeded goosefoot
Family: Chenopodiaceae · Type: annual · Native
Conservation status: CNPS 4.3
Large-seeded goosefoot is a California native annual found in northern Sierra Nevada, Modoc Plateau, and White and Inyo Mountains in disturbed or open places, scrub, and conifer forest at elevations of 1,400 to 2,400 meters. Flowering from July to October, this plant produces green flowers in terminal and axillary panicles with small clusters of blossoms. Growing 35 to 150 centimeters tall with few branches toward the top, it has an upright, open structure with multiple stems. Its distinctive leaves are broadly ovate to triangular, 25 to 150 millimeters long, with 3 to 5 wavy lobes and a dark green color, featuring a truncate to slightly heart-shaped base. The fruit is small, 1.5 to 3 millimeters in diameter, with a smooth surface and a seed that sits horizontally with a shiny, netted seed coat.
Habitat: Disturbed or open places, scrub, conifer forest
Bloom period: Jul-Oct
Elevation: 1400-2400 m
Bioregions: n SN, MP, W&I
California counties: Inyo, San Bernardino, Modoc, Plumas, Lassen, Siskiyou
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.