Linum trigynum

French flax

Family: Linaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

French flax is a naturalized annual found in northern coastal California, specifically Sonoma County, in grasslands and disturbed areas at elevations below 500 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces bright yellow flowers with petals 3.5 to 6 millimeters long. Growing with slender stems 10 to 35 centimeters tall that are completely smooth and hairless, it has delicate linear to lance-shaped leaves 5 to 20 millimeters in length. Its narrow leaves are accompanied by small yellow flowers with petals fused at the base, creating a distinctive appearance in open grassland settings. The fruit splits into 10 slightly adherent segments, containing small yellowish-brown seeds about 1 to 2 millimeters long.

Habitat: Grassland, disturbed areas

Bloom period: May-Jun

Elevation: < 500 m

Bioregions: NCo (Sonoma Co.)

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