Pectocarya setosa
Round-nut pectocarya, Round-Nut Pectocarya
Photo by Chez Brungraber
Family: Boraginaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Pectocarya setosa (Round-nut pectocarya) is a native California herb in the Boraginaceae family, recognized by round nutlets with wide wings and distinctive bristles.
Round-nut pectocarya is a California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada, central and southern California coastal regions, southeastern Mojave Plateau, southern Nevada, and desert regions in gravelly clearings of sagebrush scrub, creosote-bush scrub, pinyon and juniper woodland, and grassland at elevations of 150 to 2,300 meters. Flowering from March to June, this delicate plant produces small white flowers with distinctive bristly calyx lobes. Growing with ascending to erect branched stems 2 to 23 centimeters tall, the plant has proximal leaves that are opposite and fused at the base while distal leaves become alternate. Its leaves feature nutlets that are approximately round to obovate, with membranous-winged margins and scattered hook-tipped bristles. The fruit develops with nutlets 1.5 to 4 millimeters long, with three wide-winged and one narrow-winged nutlet.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 6 sympatric species; diagnostic round nutlets with wide wings and distinctive bristles
Habitat and range
Habitat: Gravelly clearings in sagebrush scrub, creosote-bush scrub, pinyon/juniper woodland, grassland
Elevation: 150-2300 m
California counties: San Bernardino, Los Angeles, San Diego, Kern, Riverside, Ventura, Inyo, Tulare, Fresno, Mono, Santa Barbara, Imperial, Colusa, San Luis Obispo, Glenn, Lassen, San Joaquin, Kings, San Benito, Merced, Nevada, Monterey
Outside California: to eastern Washington, southern Idaho, western Utah, Arizona, northern Baja California
Bloom period
Pectocarya setosa blooms Mar-Jun.
How to tell it apart
vs Plagiobothrys: Pectocarya sepals stay equal and separate; Plagiobothrys sepals become unequal or partly fused in fruit.; vs Cryptantha: Pectocarya nutlets have hooked bristles on edges; Cryptantha nutlets are smooth or rough, not hooked.; vs Harpagonella: Pectocarya has 4 nutlets with equal sepals; Harpagonella has 2 nutlets with huge arching spiny sepals.; vs Johnstonella: Pectocarya has flattened nutlets with marginal hooks; Johnstonella has rounded nutlets with covering bristles.; vs Greeneocharis: Pectocarya has hooked marginal bristles; Greeneocharis has smooth or minutely rough nutlets without hooks.
Frequently asked questions
Is Pectocarya setosa native to California?
Yes. Pectocarya setosa is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Pectocarya setosa bloom?
Pectocarya setosa blooms Mar-Jun.
Where in California does Pectocarya setosa grow?
Pectocarya setosa occurs in San Bernardino, Los Angeles, San Diego, Kern, Riverside, Ventura, Inyo, Tulare and other counties, at elevations of 150-2300 m.
What plant family does Pectocarya setosa belong to?
Pectocarya setosa is in the Boraginaceae family, genus Pectocarya.
What habitat does Pectocarya setosa grow in?
Pectocarya setosa grows in Gravelly clearings in sagebrush scrub, creosote-bush scrub, pinyon/juniper woodland, grassland.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Pectocarya sp. — Pectocarya
- Pectocarya anisocarpa — Unequal-fruited pectocarya
- Pectocarya heterocarpa — Mixed-nut pectocarya
- Pectocarya linearis subsp. ferocula — Narrow-toothed pectocarya
- Pectocarya penicillata — Northern pectocarya
- Pectocarya peninsularis — Baja pectocarya
- Plagiobothrys acanthocarpus — Adobe popcornflower
- Plagiobothrys arizonicus — Arizona popcornflower
- Plagiobothrys austiniae — Austin's spiny-nut popcornflower
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
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.