Gypsophila paniculata

Baby's-breath

Family: Caryophyllaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

Baby's-breath is a naturalized perennial herb found in disturbed areas across northern California, the Sierra Nevada, San Joaquin Valley, central and southern coastal regions, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert at elevations of 1,200 to 2,100 meters. Flowering from summer to fall, this plant produces delicate white flowers in openly branched clusters with many small blooms. Growing with sturdy stems 50 to 90 centimeters tall and a stout rhizome, it forms an airy, widespread growth habit. Its leaves are narrow and lance-shaped, measuring 2 to 9 millimeters wide, creating a light, feathery appearance. The small white flowers, each just 1 to 4 millimeters long, are held on glabrous pedicels with cup-shaped calyxes.

Habitat: Disturbed areas

Bloom period: Summer-fall

Elevation: 1200-2100 m

Bioregions: NCoRI, CaRH, n&ampc SNH, SnJV, CCo, SCoRO, SCo, GB, DMoj

California counties: San Diego, Lassen, Siskiyou, Mono, Tulare, Stanislaus, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara

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