Lappula redowskii var. cupulata

Crowned stickseed, Crowned Stickseed

Family: Boraginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Crowned stickseed is a California native annual found in the Great Basin and Mojave Desert bioregions in very dry, open, rocky, and often disturbed sites at elevations of 600 to 2,200 meters. Flowering from March to June, this plant produces small white flowers in delicate clusters. Growing with slender stems 10 to 30 centimeters tall, it spreads in loose, branching formations across rocky ground. Its leaves are narrow and lance-shaped, becoming smaller and more sparse toward the stem tips. The fruit is distinctive, with nutlet margins forming a distinctive swollen crown of wide, fused prickles that help distinguish this plant from other stickseed varieties.

Habitat: Very dry, open, rocky, often disturbed sites

Bloom period: Mar-Jun

Elevation: 600-2200 m

Bioregions: GB, DMoj

California counties: San Bernardino, Inyo, Mono, Lassen, Sierra

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