Phacelia amabilis

Saline valley phacelia

Family: Hydrophyllaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 3.3

Saline valley phacelia is a rare (CNPS 3.3) California native annual found in the Mojave Desert at elevations of 500 to 700 meters in gravelly soils and canyons, now presumed extinct. Flowering from April to May, this plant produces white flowers in bell-shaped corollas approximately 8 to 12 millimeters in diameter. Growing 10 to 60 centimeters tall with decumbent to erect stems that are few-branched and sparsely soft-hairy, it has a glandular appearance with dark-colored glands. Its leaves range from 20 to 150 millimeters long, with proximal leaves deeply lobed and oblong, featuring crenate to toothed edges, and distal leaves more ovate with coarse teeth. The fruit is small, ovoid, and 3 to 4 millimeters long, containing 2 to 4 seeds with finely textured surfaces.

Habitat: Presumed extinct; gravelly soils, canyons

Bloom period: Apr-May

Elevation: 500-700 m

Bioregions: DMoj.

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