Gilia yorkii

Monarch gilia, Monarch Gilia

Family: Polemoniaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Monarch gilia is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada Mountains on sunny to semi-shaded, sand- and gravel-filled limestone terraces at elevations of 1,290 to 1,830 meters. Flowering from May to July, this delicate plant produces white to pale lavender or blue flowers with ovate, obtuse lobes in open, thread-like inflorescences. Growing with spreading branches 10 to 25 centimeters tall, covered in long, soft, wavy hairs below and glandular above, it has a distinctive branching structure. Its lower leaves form a non-persistent rosette with 1 to 2 pinnate-lobed segments, 1.5 to 2.5 centimeters long, featuring distinct lobes with sharp-pointed teeth. The fruit is widely ovoid, 3 to 4.5 millimeters long, containing 6 to 12 seeds.

Habitat: Sunny to semi-shaded, sand-, gravel-filled terraces of limestone

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 1290-1830 m

Bioregions: s SNH.

California counties: Fresno

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