Puccinellia pumila

Dwarf alkali grass

Family: Poaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 2B.2

Dwarf alkali grass is a rare (CNPS 2B.2) California native perennial found in the northern Coast Ranges in coastal marshes and flats at elevations below 10 meters. Flowering in July, this plant produces delicate, small grass flowers in an open inflorescence 3 to 20 centimeters long with lower branches that become reflexed or ascending in fruit. Growing as a slender, low-growing perennial with fine stems, it forms dense tufted clumps in wetland environments. Its leaf blades are distinctively narrow, ranging from flat to slightly inrolled and measuring 1 to 3 millimeters wide when extended. The plant's spikelets feature lemmas with acute to obtuse tips, with the lowest lemma measuring 2.5 to 4.6 millimeters in length.

Habitat: Marshes, flats

Bloom period: Jul

Elevation: < 10 m

Bioregions: NCo

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