Chenopodium vulvaria

Family: Chenopodiaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Stinking goosefoot is a naturalized annual found in California's Central Valley, southern Sierra Nevada, Central Western, and Western Transverse Ranges in open, disturbed areas at elevations below 1,400 meters. Flowering from June to October, this plant produces small green flowers in compact axillary clusters. Growing with erect or ascending stems 5 to 40 centimeters tall and few branches from the base, it has a distinctively unpleasant odor. Its leaves are small, 3 to 20 millimeters long, ovate to diamond-shaped with an obtuse base and acuminate tip, appearing powdery on both surfaces. The tiny fruit is approximately 1 millimeter in diameter, with a wall attached to a black, wrinkled seed.

Habitat: Uncommon. Open, disturbed areas

Bloom period: Jun-Oct

Elevation: < 1400 m

Bioregions: CaRF, s SN, GV, CW, WTR

California counties: Kern, Solano, Marin, Siskiyou, Alameda, Yolo, Amador, Calaveras, Napa, Contra Costa, Mendocino, Shasta, Butte, Sutter, Tehama, Alpine, San Mateo, San Luis Obispo, Santa Clara, Stanislaus, Santa Barbara, San Benito

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