Impatiens capensis

Spotted jewelweed, Spotted Jewelweed

Family: Balsaminaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Spotted jewelweed is a naturalized perennial found in the San Francisco Bay Area in disturbed, moist, and often shaded sites such as streambanks at elevations below 500 meters. Flowering from mid-summer to early autumn, this plant produces yellow-orange flowers with distinctive dark red markings, hanging delicately from axillary clusters. Growing 30 to 230 centimeters tall with succulent, branching stems, it has an upright and somewhat sprawling habit. Its alternate leaves are lanceolate to ovate, 3 to 11 centimeters long, with finely toothed edges and a pointed tip. The plant produces small oblong fruits and can also generate tiny cleistogamous green flowers early or late in the season.

Habitat: Disturbed, moist, often shaded sites, streambanks

Elevation: < 500 m

Bioregions: SnFrB

California counties: Alameda

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