Cryptantha hendersonii

Henderson's cryptantha

Family: Boraginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Henderson's cryptantha is a California native annual herb found occasionally in northwestern California, the California Cascades, northern Sierra Nevada eastern slope, and Modoc Plateau in open conifer forests, sagebrush scrub, and occasionally grassland and chaparral at elevations of 150 to 1,830 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces small white flowers with yellow appendages in delicate clusters approximately 4 to 8 millimeters in diameter. Growing with erect stems 10 to 40 centimeters tall, it has stiff branches covered in fine, densely ascending rough hairs. Its leaves are linear to lanceolate, 1.5 to 5 centimeters long, with rough, coarse hairs and bristly undersides covered in bulbous-based hairs, particularly along the midrib. The fruit consists of 1 to 4 grayish-brown nutlets approximately 2.2 to 2.5 millimeters long, with a papillate surface and sharp to rounded margins.

Habitat: Loamy to rocky soils, often volcanic, generally open conifer forest, sagebrush scrub, occasionally grassland, chaparral

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 150-1830 m

Bioregions: occasionally NW (exc NCo), CaR, n SNH (e slope), MP

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