Eriastrum luteum

Yellow woolly-star, yellow-flowered eriastrum

Family: Polemoniaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Yellow woolly-star is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native annual found in south-central coastal ranges of Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties in grasslands, oak savannah, and woodland at elevations of 240 to 580 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces white or cream flowers with golden yellow throats and lobes, often featuring distinctive red to brown spots at the base of flower lobes. Growing 5 to 30 centimeters tall with erect stems that are woolly when young and becoming less hairy with age, the plant develops mostly branched stems with occasional axillary shoots. Its delicate leaves are 6 to 36 millimeters long, thread-like, and densely woolly, sometimes featuring 3 to 5 lobes at the base. The tiny capsule fruits contain one seed per chamber and measure 1.75 to 3.0 millimeters long.

Habitat: Open areas on gentle slopes, in grassland, oak savannah, woodland

Bloom period: May-Jun

Elevation: 240-580 m

Bioregions: SCoR (Monterey, San Luis Obispo cos.).

California counties: San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles

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