Sagina decumbens subsp. occidentalis

Western pearlwort, Western Pearlwort

Family: Caryophyllaceae · Type: annual · Native

Western pearlwort is a California native annual found in northwestern California, northern Sierra Nevada, Central Valley, Central Coast, San Francisco Bay Area, southern California coastal areas, Channel Islands, Peninsular Ranges, and Modoc Plateau in dry streams, chaparral, grassy areas, rock outcrops, and vernal pools at elevations below 2,000 meters. Flowering from spring to early summer, this delicate plant produces small white flowers with five petals approximately equal in length to its sepals. Growing with thread-like stems 4 to 16 centimeters tall, generally erect or ascending and glabrous or slightly glandular-hairy toward the tips, it forms a slender and delicate structure. Its leaves are narrowly linear, 4 to 20 millimeters long, and glabrous, creating a fine, sparse appearance. The tiny brown seeds are less than half a millimeter long with a grooved back, contributing to its subtle and intricate botanical character.

Habitat: dry streams, chaparral, grassy areas, rock outcrops, vernal pools

Bloom period: Spring-early summer

Elevation: < 2000 m

Bioregions: NW, n&ampc SN, GV, CCo, SnFrB, SCo, ChI, PR, MP

California counties: Los Angeles, San Diego, Del Norte, Alameda, Humboldt, Kern, Marin, Modoc, Monterey, Riverside, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Tulare, Butte, San Bernardino, Orange, San Mateo, Sacramento, Madera, Mendocino, Tehama, Glenn, Colusa, Plumas, Merced, Solano, Calaveras, Santa Clara, Napa, Shasta, Sierra, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, El Dorado, Trinity, Ventura, Mariposa, Yolo

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