Delphinium parishii subsp. parishii

Parish's, desert, sky blue, or mojave larkspur

Family: Ranunculaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Parish's larkspur is a California native perennial found in southern Sierra Nevada, Tehachapi, Transverse Ranges, eastern Sierra Nevada, and Mojave Desert regions in desert scrub and juniper woodland at elevations of 300 to 2,500 meters. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces sky blue flowers with distinctive lateral reflexed sepals and a delicate 8 to 15 millimeter spur. Growing with stems 17 to 100 centimeters tall, it develops a robust and branching structure. Its leaves are distinctive, with basal leaves having 3 to 5 lobes and cauline leaves featuring 3 to 15 lobes, typically absent during flowering. The plant produces fruits 9 to 21 millimeters long, completing its annual reproductive cycle.

Habitat: Desert scrub, juniper woodland

Bloom period: Mar-May

Elevation: 300-2500 m

Bioregions: s SNH, Teh, TR, SNE, D

California counties: San Bernardino, Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Mono, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, Ventura, San Joaquin, Santa Barbara

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