Sibaropsis hammittii

Hammitt's clay-cress

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Hammitt's clay-cress is a rare California native annual herb ranked 1B.2 by CNPS, found in the Peninsular Ranges of the Santa Ana Mountains and San Diego County, growing in rocky washes, steep hillsides, and exposed calcareous rubble at elevations of 600 to 1,300 meters. Flowering from March to April, this plant produces delicate purple to pink flowers 8.5 to 10 millimeters long with darker veining and spoon-shaped petals. Growing 5 to 20 centimeters tall with erect, glaucous stems that are simple or slightly branched near the base, it appears slender and delicate. Its linear leaves are narrow, measuring 1.5 to 3 centimeters long and only 0.5 to 1 millimeter wide, growing sessile along the stem. The plant produces elongated linear fruit (siliques) 2 to 2.5 centimeters long, containing 24 to 44 small oblong seeds.

Habitat: Washes, steep hillsides, dry flats, scree, calcareous rubble, rocky bluffs, exposed crevices

Bloom period: Mar-Apr

Elevation: 600-1300 m

Bioregions: PR (Santa Ana Mtns, Riverside Co. Viejas Mtn, Poser Mtn, San Diego Co.).

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