Cistanthe maritima

Seaside cistanthe, Seaside Cistanthe

Family: Montiaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.2

Seaside cistanthe is a native perennial found in southern California coastal regions including the Southern California Coast and Channel Islands in coastal scrub and sandy sea bluff habitats at elevations generally below 460 meters. Flowering from February to June, this plant produces fuchsia flowers 3 to 6 millimeters long with purple-veined sepals. Growing with spreading or ascending stems, it forms low-growing clumps with distinctive glaucous foliage. Its leaves are obovate to spoon-shaped, 1 to 6 centimeters long, flat and bluish-green in appearance. The plant produces numerous small seeds with short white hairs, giving it a delicate and intricate texture in its coastal environments.

Habitat: Coastal scrub, sandy soil, sea bluffs

Bloom period: (Dec) Feb-Jun

Elevation: generally < 460 m

Bioregions: SCo, ChI

California counties: Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Diego

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