Lessingia virgata

Wand lessingia, Wand Lessingia

Family: Asteraceae · Type: annual · Native

Wand lessingia is a California native annual found in northern Sierra Nevada foothills, northeastern Sacramento Valley, and northern California coast ranges in dry plains, grassy woodland openings, and occasionally volcanic soils at elevations of 50 to 500 meters. Flowering from June to October, this plant produces white to pale lavender flowers in narrow spike-like clusters with darker flower tubes. Growing with erect stems 5 to 60 centimeters tall, it develops long ascending branches that are tan and sparsely hairy. Its small oblong to ovate leaves are 5 to 10 millimeters long, appressed upward, and covered with sunken glands and tomentose hairs. The plant's narrow involucres are 5 to 7 millimeters long with lanceolate phyllaries that have green or purple tips.

Habitat: dry plains and foothills, grassy openings in woodland, occasionally in volcanic soil

Bloom period: Jun-Oct

Elevation: 50-500 m

Bioregions: CaRF, n SNF, ne ScV.

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