Claytonia peirsonii subsp. californacis

Furnace spring beauty

Family: Montiaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Furnace spring beauty is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native perennial found in pinyon-juniper and white fir-limber pine mixed associations on north-facing stony and talus slopes of limestone and marble substrates. Flowering from March to May, this delicate plant produces white to light pink flowers with yellow to orange or pink bases, delicately veined in faint pink. Growing with slender stems 3 to 8 centimeters tall, it forms low, compact clusters in rocky mountain terrain. Its basal leaves are narrow and lance-linear, measuring 5 to 25 millimeters long and less than 3 millimeters wide, with a distinctive green venation that appears slightly raised. The small, oblanceolate to elliptic cauline leaves range from 10 to 23 millimeters in length, often displaying subtle green secondary veins.

Habitat: Openings of pinyon-juniper and white fir-limber pine mixed associations, on north-facing stony and talus slopes of carbonate-dominated sedimentary (or metasedimentary) substrates (e.g. limestone, marble) often mixed with organic material

Bloom period: Mar-May

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