Streptanthus glandulosus subsp. glandulosus
most beautiful jewelflower
Family: Brassicaceae · Type: annual · Native
Most beautiful jewelflower is a California native annual found in southern North Coast Ranges, San Francisco Bay Area, and central and southern Coast Ranges in serpentine or metamorphic rocky habitats, chaparral openings, and steep woodlands at elevations of 150 to 1,400 meters. Flowering from April to July, this plant produces lavender to purple flowers with darker veined petals 8 to 17 millimeters long, set against striking red-purple to dark maroon sepals. Growing with slender stems 10 to 100 centimeters tall that are densely bristly near the base and less hairy towards the top, it develops an elegant, upright form. Its cauline leaves are sparsely bristly, with upper leaves often entire or minutely toothed, creating a delicate textural appearance. The fruit develops as an ascending to spreading silique that can be straight or slightly curved, reflecting the plant's graceful botanical architecture.
Habitat: Serpentine or metamorphic (Franciscan formation), rocky, generally barren slopes, chaparral openings, steep woodland
Bloom period: Apr-Jul
Elevation: 150-1400 m
Bioregions: s NCoRO (uncommon), s NCoRH, c&s NCoRI, SnFrB, SCoRO (uncommon), n&c SCoRI.
California counties: Colusa, Mendocino, Santa Clara, Stanislaus, Contra Costa, San Luis Obispo, Alameda, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, Yolo, Lake, Solano, Sonoma, Siskiyou, Tehama, Marin, Santa Cruz, Merced, Glenn, San Joaquin, Inyo
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.