Triteleia lilacina

Foothill triteleia

Family: Themidaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Foothill triteleia is a California native perennial found in southern California Range Front and northern and central Sierra Nevada Foothill bioregions on dry rocky outcrops, volcanic hills, and mesas at elevations of 70 to 200 meters. Flowering from March to July, this plant produces white flowers with delicate lilac-dotted stamens in an inflorescence with translucent, glassy-beaded perianth 7 to 10 millimeters long. Growing with a smooth to scabrous scape 30 to 60 centimeters tall, it emerges from a basal cluster of leaves. Its linear leaves reach 10 to 40 centimeters long and 4 to 22 millimeters wide, forming a graceful, grass-like base. The delicate flower clusters feature pedicels 5 to 50 millimeters long, creating an elegant, airy appearance above rocky terrain.

Habitat: dry rocky outcrops, volcanic hills, mesas

Bloom period: Mar-Jul

Elevation: 70-200 m

Bioregions: s CaRF, n&ampc SNF.

California counties: Butte, Tehama, Shasta, Tuolumne, Calaveras, Placer, El Dorado

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