Chorizanthe pungens var. hartwegiana

Ben lomond spineflower

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1 · Endangered

Ben lomond spineflower is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native perennial found in the southwestern San Francisco Bay region in the Santa Cruz Sandhills of Santa Cruz County on sandy habitats at elevations of 90 to 500 meters. Flowering from April to July, this plant produces delicate white flowers with distinctive dark pink to purple involucre lobe margins. Growing 5 to 25 centimeters tall with ascending to erect stems, it forms a compact, low-spreading habit characteristic of sandy coastal environments. Its leaves are small and narrow, adapting to the sparse, nutrient-poor sandy terrain. The plant's intricate floral structure and limited distribution make it a unique endemic of the Santa Cruz Sandhills ecosystem.

Habitat: Sand

Bloom period: Apr-Jul

Elevation: 90-500 m

Bioregions: sw SnFrB (Santa Cruz Sandhills, Santa Cruz Co.).

California counties: Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Santa Clara

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