Collinsia corymbosa

Round-headed chinese-houses

Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Round-headed chinese-houses is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native annual found in the northern coastal region of Mendocino County along coastal sand dunes at elevations below 20 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces white and pale lavender flowers 14 to 22 millimeters long with distinctive brown upper lobes and spoon-shaped lateral petals. Growing with reddish, decumbent branches 5 to 25 centimeters tall that are densely scaly, it has a delicate, spreading form. Its leaves are lanceolate to ovate, somewhat thick and crenate, with a pale green color and fine gray hairs on the upper surface. The plant produces numerous slightly concave seeds across its compact, head-like inflorescence.

Habitat: Coastal sand dunes

Bloom period: Apr-Jun

Elevation: < 20 m

Bioregions: NCo (Mendocino Co.).

California counties: Mendocino, San Francisco, Marin, Alameda, Humboldt, Santa Clara, Fresno

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