Sidotheca caryophylloides

Chickweed oxytheca

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.3

Chickweed oxytheca is a California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada, Transverse Ranges, and San Jacinto Mountains in sandy or gravelly habitats at elevations of 1,300 to 2,600 meters. Flowering from June to September, this plant produces green-yellow to reddish flowers with three-lobed perianth segments. Growing with delicate stems 10 to 25 centimeters tall and spreading 3 to 40 centimeters in diameter, it forms a low, intricate ground-hugging pattern. Its leaves are relatively narrow, measuring 1 to 6 centimeters long and 0.3 to 1.2 centimeters wide, with distinctive involucre bracts featuring short green to reddish awns. The fruit is small, measuring 1.2 to 1.5 millimeters in length.

Habitat: Sand or gravel

Bloom period: Jun-Sep

Elevation: 1300-2600 m

Bioregions: s SNH (Tulare Co.), TR, SnJt.

California counties: Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, Riverside, Tulare

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