Melica spectabilis
Purple oniongrass
(c) Matt Berger, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Matt Berger · licence
Family: Poaceae · Type: Grass · Native
Conservation status: CNPS 4.3
Melica spectabilis (Purple oniongrass) is a native California grass in the Poaceae family, recognized by wet habitat preference.
Purple oniongrass is a California native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges, northern North Coast Ranges, northern Sierra Nevada, and Warner Mountains in wet sites, meadows, and conifer forest at elevations of 1,200 to 2,600 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces distinctive purple-tinted spikelets 7 to 19 millimeters long with delicate, appressed branches. Growing with stems 35 to 100 centimeters tall and short-stalked corms scattered throughout, it forms compact clusters with short rhizomes. Its leaf blades are narrow, 2 to 5 millimeters wide, with extremely short ligules less than 3 millimeters long. The plant features 3 to 7 bisexual florets with lemmas that are generally widest above the middle and have acute to obtuse tips.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: Co-occurs with 10 species; wet habitat preference is diagnostic
Habitat and range
Habitat: Wet sites, meadows, conifer forest
Elevation: 1200-2600 m
California counties: El Dorado, Trinity, Siskiyou, Mendocino, Humboldt, Nevada, Glenn, Modoc, Mono, Napa
Outside California: British Columbia, Rocky Mountains
Bloom period
Melica spectabilis blooms May-Jul.
Conservation status
CNPS 4.3
How to tell it apart
vs Oloptum: Melica has club-shaped sterile floret tips; Oloptum has normal pointed spikelets and needle-like rolled leaves.; vs Poa: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets at tips; Poa has all fertile florets and boat-shaped lemmas with cobwebby hairs.; vs Lolium: Melica has club-shaped floret tips and closed leaf sheaths; Lolium has edgewise spikelets and split leaf sheaths.; vs Festuca: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets; Festuca has all fertile florets and open (split) leaf sheaths.; vs Ehrharta: Melica has club-shaped sterile florets at top; Ehrharta has hardened sterile florets at bottom of spikelet.
Frequently asked questions
Is Melica spectabilis native to California?
Yes. Melica spectabilis is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Melica spectabilis bloom?
Melica spectabilis blooms May-Jul.
Where in California does Melica spectabilis grow?
Melica spectabilis occurs in El Dorado, Trinity, Siskiyou, Mendocino, Humboldt, Nevada, Glenn, Modoc and other counties, at elevations of 1200-2600 m.
What plant family does Melica spectabilis belong to?
Melica spectabilis is in the Poaceae family, genus Melica.
Is Melica spectabilis rare or endangered?
Melica spectabilis carries California Rare Plant Rank 4.3, state rank S4.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CNPS Rare Plant Inventory · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos · CDFW CNDDB
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.