Cleomella arborea var. arborea

Bladderpod

Family: Cleomaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Bladderpod is a California native shrub found in southern California, the southern Channel Islands, and the Peninsular Ranges in coastal scrub, grassland, and rocky slopes at elevations of 5 to 1,200 meters. Flowering throughout the year, this plant produces delicate flowers with pale yellow to white petals. Growing to 1 to 2 meters tall with multiple branching stems, the shrub forms an open, somewhat irregular shape. Its leaves are compound with small, green leaflets that provide a soft, textured appearance. The fruit is an distinctive obovoid pod that tapers to a short beak, giving the plant its common name of bladderpod.

Habitat: Slopes, grassland, coastal scrub

Bloom period: All year

Elevation: 5-1200 m

Bioregions: SCo, s ChI, PR

California counties: Riverside, San Diego, Kern, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino, Ventura, Inyo, Orange, Fresno

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