Clarkia unguiculata
Elegant clarkia
(c) Salicyna, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · licence
Family: Onagraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Clarkia unguiculata (Elegant clarkia) is a native California herb in the Onagraceae family, recognized by glabrous glaucous stems, rotate corolla, distinctive sepal hairs.
Elegant clarkia is a California native annual found in woodland habitats across the northern Coast Ranges, southern California Ranges, Sierra Nevada, Sacramento Valley, San Joaquin Valley, southern Coast, San Francisco Bay Area, southern Coast Ranges, southern California, Channel Islands, Transverse Ranges, and Peninsular Ranges at elevations below 1,500 meters. Flowering from April to September, this plant produces lavender-pink to salmon or dark red-purple flowers with triangular or diamond-shaped petals 1 to 2.5 centimeters long, featuring distinctive outer red anthers contrasting with paler inner anthers. Growing up to 1 meter tall with erect, glaucous stems that are completely glabrous, it develops an elegant upright form. Its leaves are lanceolate to elliptic, measuring 1 to 6 centimeters long with petioles up to 1 centimeter. The flower sepals range from green to dark red, with sparsely to densely distributed puberulent hairs and longer spreading hairs less than 3 millimeters long.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 65 sympatric species; key features are glabrous glaucous stems, rotate corolla, distinctive sepal hairs
Habitat and range
Habitat: Common. Woodland
Elevation: < 1500 m
California counties: Los Angeles, Kern, Fresno, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Ventura, El Dorado, Monterey, Santa Clara, Sonoma, Tuolumne, Tulare, San Mateo, Butte, Contra Costa, Stanislaus, Santa Cruz, Alameda, Riverside, Mariposa, San Bernardino, San Benito, Napa, Madera, Lake, Yolo, Sutter, Solano, Placer, Colusa, Amador, Marin, Nevada, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Calaveras, Mendocino, Merced, Tehama, Yuba
Bloom period
Clarkia unguiculata blooms Apr-Sep.
How to tell it apart
vs Epilobium: Clarkia seeds lack a hair tuft and its petals are broad, often clawed or lobed; Epilobium and Chamerion have seeds bearing a tuft of silky hairs and long, thin capsules.; vs Oenothera: Clarkia flowers are pink to lavender-purple and its buds nod before opening; Oenothera flowers are generally yellow (or white), larger, and open at dusk.; vs Camissonia: Clarkia petals are pink-purple, often fan-shaped or lobed with a distinct claw; Camissonia and Camissoniopsis have yellow, unlobed petals.; vs Sidalcea: Clarkia has 4 petals, an inferior ovary, and a 4-lobed stigma; Sidalcea (checkerbloom) has 5 petals, a superior ovary, and a central mallow staminal column.; vs Gayophytum: Clarkia is showy with petals 10-35 mm; Gayophytum has minute white-to-pink flowers only a few mm across on thread-like branches.
Frequently asked questions
Is Clarkia unguiculata native to California?
Yes. Clarkia unguiculata is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Clarkia unguiculata bloom?
Clarkia unguiculata blooms Apr-Sep.
Where in California does Clarkia unguiculata grow?
Clarkia unguiculata occurs in Los Angeles, Kern, Fresno, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Ventura, El Dorado and other counties, at elevations of < 1500 m.
What plant family does Clarkia unguiculata belong to?
Clarkia unguiculata is in the Onagraceae family, genus Clarkia.
What habitat does Clarkia unguiculata grow in?
Clarkia unguiculata grows in Common. Woodland.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.