Thalictrum alpinum
Arctic meadow-rue
Family: Ranunculaceae · Type: perennial · Native
Conservation status: CNPS 4.3
Arctic meadow-rue is a native perennial found in northern Sierra Nevada and northern White and Inyo Mountains in alpine meadows with moist, gravelly soils at elevations of 2,900 to 3,700 meters. Flowering from June to August, this delicate plant produces small white to pale green flowers with thread-like stamens. Growing as a diminutive plant just 5 to 15 centimeters tall, it forms compact clusters with slender, nearly leafless stems. Its basal leaves are divided into small segments 4 to 10 millimeters long, creating a fine, lacy appearance. The plant produces 1 to 6 curved, laterally compressed fruits with distinctive ribbed sides.
Habitat: Meadows, generally moist, gravelly soils
Bloom period: Jun-Aug
Elevation: 2900-3700 m
Bioregions: n&c SNH, n W&I
California counties: Inyo, Mono
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.