Monardella odoratissima subsp. glauca

Family: Lamiaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Glaucous monardella is a California native shrub found in the Klamath Ranges, northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, and Great Basin in rocky openings, sagebrush scrub, and subalpine forest at elevations of 1,000 to 3,500 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces lavender to red-purple flowers in dense clusters 16 to 28 millimeters wide, surrounded by pale rose or grayish bracts. Growing with green to dark gray stems 10 to 30 centimeters tall, it forms compact, multi-stemmed clusters. Its leaves are highly variable, generally elliptic to ovate, 15 to 25 millimeters long, ranging from nearly smooth to slightly hairy. The flower clusters are subtended by reflexed leaves with distinctive pale, rose, or grayish bracts that add textural interest to the plant's appearance.

Habitat: Rocky openings, sagebrush scrub to subalpine forest

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 1000-3500 m

Bioregions: KR, NCoRH, CaR, SNH, GB

California counties: Lassen, Modoc, Fresno, Tuolumne, Plumas, Siskiyou, El Dorado, Mono, Humboldt, Nevada, Inyo, Tulare, Alpine, Placer, Shasta, Trinity, Mariposa, Madera, Butte, Amador, Kern, Tehama, Glenn, Sierra, Mendocino, Colusa, Del Norte, Lake

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