Valeriana sitchensis

Sitka valerian

Family: Valerianaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Sitka valerian is a California native perennial found in northern coastal regions in moist mountain meadows and forest edges. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces white to pale pink flowers in delicate clusters approximately 5 to 8 millimeters long. Growing with erect stems 30 to 70 centimeters tall that have short hairy nodes, it develops distinctive foliage with complex leaf structures. Its leaves range 3 to 30 centimeters long, typically featuring 3 to 7 lanceolate to rounded leaflets that are either basal or along the stem. The fruit is small, measuring 4 to 6 millimeters in length and appearing lanceolate to slightly oblong.

California counties: Del Norte, Siskiyou, Trinity, Humboldt, Mariposa

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