Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca
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Family: Polemoniaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca is a native California herb in the Polemoniaceae family, recognized by glaucous stems and sandy desert habitat.
Gilia ochroleuca is a California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada, western and Inyo Mountains, and western Mojave Desert in sandy desert habitats at elevations of 600 to 2,050 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces pale flowers with a small corolla 4 to 6 millimeters long. Growing with spreading branches less than 30 centimeters tall, it has a distinctly gray-green appearance with glaucous stems below the flower clusters. Its leaves are tufted and woolly-hairy, with 1 to 2 pinnate-lobed divisions and ascending lobes 3 to 10 millimeters long, with distinctive palmate inflorescence leaves. The fruit is small, spherical, and 2 to 5 millimeters in size.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 26 sympatric species; key features are glaucous stems and sandy desert habitat
Habitat and range
Habitat: Desert sand
Elevation: 600-2050 m
California counties: San Bernardino, Kern, Inyo, Los Angeles, Mono, Tulare, Santa Barbara, San Benito, Ventura
Bloom period
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca blooms Apr-Jun.
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 ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca native to California?
Yes. Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca bloom?
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca blooms Apr-Jun.
Where in California does Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca grow?
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca occurs in San Bernardino, Kern, Inyo, Los Angeles, Mono, Tulare, Santa Barbara, San Benito and other counties, at elevations of 600-2050 m.
What plant family does Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca belong to?
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca is in the Polemoniaceae family, genus Gilia.
What habitat does Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca grow in?
Gilia ochroleuca subsp. ochroleuca grows in Desert sand.
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.