Chorizanthe obovata

Spoon-sepal spineflower

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Spoon-sepal spineflower is a California native perennial found in southern Santa Catalina Mountains and Coast Ranges on sandy or gravelly sites at elevations of 10 to 1,300 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces white to pink flowers with delicate, fringed inner lobes. Growing prostrate to erect with multiple branches, it spreads 1 to 4 meters in diameter and reaches 10 to 30 centimeters tall. Its leaves are predominantly basal, with oblanceolate blades 0.5 to 2.5 centimeters long and 0.3 to 1 centimeter wide. The distinctive involucre is 3 to 4 millimeters long, three-angled with six ribbed lobes and straight to hooked awns.

Habitat: Sand or gravel

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 10-1300 m

Bioregions: s SCoRO.

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