Urtica gracilis subsp. gracilis

American stinging nettle, American Stinging Nettle

Family: Urticaceae · Type: perennial · Native

American stinging nettle is a native perennial found in northern coastal California, the Trinity Alps, northern coastal California, and the San Joaquin Valley delta in moist or riparian areas and willow scrub at elevations below 245 meters. Flowering from March to October, this plant produces small inconspicuous greenish flowers in delicate clusters. Growing with tall stems 100 to 250 centimeters high, it forms dense stands with prominent stinging hairs. Its leaves are broadly ovate, typically 5 to 10 centimeters long, with serrated edges and a distinctive stinging texture. The plant is generally monoecious, with male and female flowers occurring on the same plant.

Habitat: Moist or riparian areas, willow scrub

Bloom period: Mar-Oct

Elevation: < 245 m

Bioregions: NCo, KR (Trinity Alps), deltaic SnJV, n CCo

California counties: San Luis Obispo, Humboldt, Colusa, Marin, Del Norte, Mendocino, Sonoma, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Contra Costa, Plumas, Santa Cruz, Siskiyou, Glenn, Tehama, Lake, El Dorado, San Diego, San Joaquin, Monterey, Trinity, Placer, Alameda, Mono

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