Eriogonum caespitosum

Matted wild buckwheat, Matted Wild Buckwheat

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Matted wild buckwheat is a California native perennial found in the Great Basin region in sandy habitats at elevations of 1,500 to 3,000 meters. Flowering from April to July, this plant produces yellow to rose-colored flowers in compact heads 0.5 to 2 centimeters wide with distinctive reflexed teeth. Growing as a low-spreading mat typically 10 to 50 centimeters in diameter with multiple stems up to 8 centimeters tall, it forms dense ground-covering clusters. Its basal leaves are small and woolly, measuring 2 to 10 millimeters long and less than 5 millimeters wide, with a soft tomentose texture. The mature fruits are 4 to 5 millimeters long, typically glabrous with a slightly hairy beak.

Habitat: Common. Sand

Bloom period: Apr-Jul

Elevation: (1300) 1500-3000 m

Bioregions: GB

California counties: Inyo, Mono, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Sierra, Kern

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