Eriogonum exaltatum

Ladder wild buckwheat

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: annual · Native

Ladder wild buckwheat is a California native annual found in the southeastern Inyo County desert mountains in sandy habitats at elevations of 500 to 1,400 meters. Flowering from May to October, this plant produces white to pale pink flowers in delicate, whip-like branching clusters up to 50 centimeters wide. Growing 1 to 2 meters tall with slender, erect stems, it spreads with an open, expansive growth habit. Its basal leaves are nearly round, measuring 2 to 5 centimeters long, with a soft, woolly white underside and sparsely hairy upper surface. The fruit is small, approximately 2 to 2.5 millimeters long and smooth.

Habitat: Sand

Bloom period: May-Oct

Elevation: 500-1400 m

Bioregions: DMoj (se Inyo Co.)

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