Puccinellia parishii

Parish's alkali grass, Parish's Alkali Grass

Family: Poaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Parish's alkali grass is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native annual found in western Mojave Desert regions, specifically southwestern San Bernardino County, in mineral springs at elevations of 700 to 1,000 meters. Flowering from April to May, this delicate grass produces small, subtle flowers with densely hairy lemma veins. Growing with slender stems and extremely narrow leaves less than 1.2 millimeters wide when fully extended, the plant has an intricate, compact inflorescence 1 to 8.5 centimeters long with erect to reflexed lower branches. Its leaves are characteristically cauline, tightly inrolled, creating a fine, thread-like appearance. The plant's smallest lemmas measure approximately 2 millimeters long, with obtuse to truncate tips and sparse fine scabrous margins.

Habitat: Mineral springs

Bloom period: Apr-May

Elevation: 700-1000 m

Bioregions: w DMoj (sw San Bernardino Co.)

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