Chorizanthe uniaristata

One-awn spineflower

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: perennial · Native

One-awn spineflower is a California native perennial found in southern Sierra Nevada, eastern Central West, and northern Western Transverse Ranges in sandy, gravelly, or clay habitats at elevations of 800 to 1,900 meters. Flowering from April to July, this plant produces white flowers with green-white tubes in small, open to dense clusters. Growing as a tufted or mounded plant 2 to 6 centimeters tall and spreading 5 to 40 centimeters wide, it has delicate branches emerging from its base with spreading or ascending stems. Its basal leaves are oblanceolate, thinly hairy, and measure 5 to 15 millimeters long and 2 to 8 millimeters wide. The distinctive involucre features 6 unequal lobes, with one abaxial lobe 3 to 6 millimeters long tipped by a straight awn 2.5 to 5.5 millimeters long.

Habitat: Common. Sand, gravel, talus or clay

Bloom period: Apr-Jul

Elevation: 800-1900 m

Bioregions: s SN, e CW, n WTR.

California counties: San Luis Obispo, Kern, Ventura, Monterey, Santa Barbara, Riverside, San Benito, Fresno, Los Angeles, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Tulare, Kings, Madera

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