Ephedra californica

Desert tea, Desert Tea

Family: Ephedraceae · Type: shrub · Native

Desert tea is a California native shrub found in southern Sierra Nevada foothills, Tehachapi, western San Joaquin Valley, south coastal ranges, southwestern California, and desert regions in arid grassland, chaparral, and creosote-bush scrub at elevations of 70 to 1,300 meters. Its stems are distinctive yellow-green to gray-brown, growing 0.3 to 1.5 meters tall with multiple branching twigs. This shrub has small white-margined leaves arranged three per node, which become recurved and slightly swollen with age. Its leaves are diminutive, measuring 2 to 6 millimeters long, with white margins that gradually wear away. The plant produces seed cones 4.5 to 8 millimeters long, with ovate bracts that have translucent, scarious margins and an orange or green-yellow center.

Habitat: Scattered in arid grassland, chaparral, creosote-bush scrub

Elevation: 70-1300 m

Bioregions: s SNF, Teh, w SnJV, SCoR, SW, D

California counties: Riverside, San Bernardino, Fresno, San Benito, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Lassen, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Merced, Santa Clara, Tulare, Orange

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