Lithospermum arvense

Gromwell

Family: Boraginaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Gromwell is a naturalized annual found in northern Sierra Nevada, San Francisco Bay Area (extirpated), and Modoc Plateau in disturbed areas and open meadows at elevations of 100 to 1,500 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces white to blue-white flowers about 5 to 8 millimeters long with funnel-shaped corollas. Growing with branched stems 10 to 70 centimeters tall that emerge from a red root, it has a sparse, strigose appearance. Its leaves are relatively few, ranging 2 to 6 centimeters long and varying from linear to lanceolate in shape. The fruit consists of small, wrinkled, brown nutlets about 2.5 to 3 millimeters long that develop late in the season.

Habitat: Disturbed areas, open meadows

Bloom period: Apr-Jun

Elevation: 100-1500 m

Bioregions: n SNH, SnFrB (extirpated), MP

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