Triteleia laxa

Ithuriel's spear, common triteleia, Common Triteleia

Family: Themidaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Ithuriel's spear is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, the Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, central western California, and Transverse Ranges in open forests, conifer woodlands, and grasslands on clay soils at elevations below 1,500 meters. Flowering from March to June, this plant produces blue to blue-purple or white flowers in clusters with perianth 18 to 47 millimeters long, displaying gradually spreading lobes. Growing with tall scapes 10 to 70 centimeters high that are smooth or slightly rough, it emerges from underground corms. Its linear leaves reach 20 to 40 centimeters long and 4 to 25 millimeters wide, providing a slender backdrop to its distinctive flower clusters. The flower's stamens are uniquely attached at two levels, with white to bluish anthers creating an intricate floral structure.

Habitat: Common. Open forest, conifer or foothill woodland, grassland on clay soil

Bloom period: Mar-Jun

Elevation: < 1500 m

Bioregions: NW, CaR, SN, CW, TR

California counties: Mendocino, Kern, Tulare, Lake, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Butte, Yuba, San Joaquin, Monterey, Shasta, Merced, Humboldt, San Bernardino, Tehama, Alameda, Sonoma, Santa Cruz, Del Norte, Fresno, Santa Barbara, Napa, Marin, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tuolumne, Amador, Sacramento, Contra Costa, Mariposa, San Francisco, Colusa, Madera, Los Angeles, Solano, Yolo, El Dorado, Nevada, San Benito, Calaveras, Placer, San Luis Obispo, Siskiyou, Glenn, Trinity, Sierra, San Diego

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