Glossopetalon spinescens var. aridum
Nevada greasewood, Nevada Greasewood
Family: Crossosomataceae · Type: shrub · Native
Nevada greasewood is a native shrub found in southern Klamath Ranges, southern Sierra Nevada Mountains (Piute Mountains, Kern County), southern Border Mountains (northern base), White and Inyo Mountains, and Desert Mountains in limestone habitats at elevations of 850 to 2,720 meters. Flowering from April to May, this plant produces small white to cream-colored flowers 3 to 7 millimeters long with delicate petals. Growing to less than 2 meters tall with an upright form, it develops distinctively thorny branch tips and a compact, somewhat rigid structure. Its leaves are 5 to 17 millimeters long, oblong to obovate with barely visible veins on the underside, creating a subtle, muted green appearance. The plant produces one to two shiny brown seeds 2 to 3 millimeters long, adding to its distinctive desert adaptation.
Habitat: Limestone
Bloom period: Apr-May
Elevation: 850-2720 m
Bioregions: s KR, s SNH (Piute Mtns, Kern Co.), SnBr (n base), W&I, DMtns
California counties: Inyo, San Bernardino, Mono, Trinity, Siskiyou, Kern
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.