Gilia minor
Little gilia
(c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Polemoniaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Gilia minor (Little gilia) is a native California herb in the Polemoniaceae family, recognized by . Key features: small flowers ~2× calyx, narrow leaf segments, valves not completely detaching.
Little gilia is a California native annual found in southern Coast Ranges, San Joaquin Valley, western Transverse Ranges, San Gabriel Mountains, and Mojave Desert in firm sandy habitats at elevations of 300 to 1,100 meters. Flowering from March to April, this plant produces purple to lavender flowers with yellow throats and purple veins, approximately 4 to 8 millimeters long. Growing with decumbent stems 6 to 20 centimeters tall, it forms tufted clusters with woolly-hairy lower branches. Its basal leaves grow in a rosette with 1-pinnate lobes, each lobe linear and measuring 0.6 to 0.9 millimeters wide, covered in tufted woolly hairs. The fruit is narrowly ovoid, 5 to 7 millimeters long, containing 18 to 27 seeds.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 41 sympatric species. Key features: small flowers ~2× calyx, narrow leaf segments, valves not completely detaching
Habitat and range
Habitat: Firm sand, generally at base of shrubs
Elevation: 300-1100 m
California counties: San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Inyo, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Fresno, Kings
Outside California: Arizona
Bloom period
Gilia minor blooms Mar-Apr.
How to tell it apart
vs Saltugilia: Gilia has white cobwebby or sharply bent hairs; Saltugilia has translucent, barely glandular hairs.; vs Navarretia: Gilia has cobwebby/bent hairs; Navarretia has very short uniform glandular hairs and spiny flower heads.; vs Phacelia: Gilia has white cobwebby hairs; Phacelia has coiled flower clusters and straight bristly hairs.; vs Allophyllum: Gilia has white cobwebby or bent hairs; Allophyllum has long fuzzy glandular hairs.; vs Aliciella: Gilia has funnel-shaped flowers; Aliciella has wheel-shaped flowers with spreading lobes.
Frequently asked questions
Is Gilia minor native to California?
Yes. Gilia minor is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Gilia minor bloom?
Gilia minor blooms Mar-Apr.
Where in California does Gilia minor grow?
Gilia minor occurs in San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Inyo, San Luis Obispo and other counties, at elevations of 300-1100 m.
What plant family does Gilia minor belong to?
Gilia minor is in the Polemoniaceae family, genus Gilia.
What habitat does Gilia minor grow in?
Gilia minor grows in Firm sand, generally at base of shrubs.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.