Matelea parvifolia

Spearleaf

Family: Apocynaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 2B.3

Spearleaf is a rare (CNPS 2B.3) California native perennial found in the Sonoran Desert bioregion in dry rocky areas at elevations of 700 to 1,000 meters. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces green to purple flowers with distinctive acute, turned-out teeth between corolla lobes. Growing with slender, much-branched stems up to 50 centimeters tall, it forms a delicate, intricate structure. Its leaves are notably small, with blade sizes generally less than one centimeter long. The plant produces distinctive fruits approximately 7 centimeters long with fine longitudinal grooves.

Habitat: dry rocky areas

Bloom period: Mar-May

Elevation: 700-1000 m

Bioregions: D

California counties: San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial

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