Eschscholzia glyptosperma

Desert gold poppy

Family: Papaveraceae · Type: annual · Native

Desert gold poppy is a California native annual found in the desert bioregion in desert washes, flats, and slopes at elevations of 50 to 1,500 meters. Flowering from February to May, this plant produces bright yellow flowers with petals 12 to 25 millimeters long. Growing erect and glabrous with stems 5 to 25 centimeters tall, it has a delicate, slender form. Its basal leaves are intricately divided into three-part segments, with short linear leaflets condensed at the end of long leaf stalks. The fruit develops to 4 to 7 centimeters long, bearing round seeds 1.2 to 1.8 millimeters wide in tan to ashy-gray tones.

Habitat: Desert washes, flats, slopes

Bloom period: Feb-May

Elevation: 50-1500 m

Bioregions: D

California counties: San Bernardino, Riverside, Inyo, Kern, Imperial, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles, Fresno, Sacramento, Butte

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