Glyptopleura marginata

Carved seed

Family: Asteraceae · Type: annual · Native

Carved seed is a California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions in sandy or rocky desert habitats, often with alkaline soils, at elevations of 600 to 2,100 meters. Flowering from April to July, this delicate plant produces white to cream-colored ligule flowers in small clusters with distinctive crust-like phyllary margins. Growing with compact stems 1 to 6 centimeters tall, it forms low, spreading clusters across arid landscapes. Its leaves are small, measuring 0.5 to 5 centimeters long, with conspicuous white, crust-like margins that provide a unique textural quality. The plant's compact form and pale, crusty leaf edges make it well-adapted to harsh desert environments.

Habitat: Sandy or rocky deserts, often in alkaline soils

Bloom period: Apr-Jul

Elevation: 600-2100 m

Bioregions: s SNH, GB, DMoj

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