Wildflower Identification Guide (White)

Coarsegold, California
Revised 5-19-13

NOTES Baby Blue-Eyes, White variant (Closeup)	Baby Blue-Eyes, White variant Nemophila menziesii Waterleaf family	NOTES Common Bedstraw (Closeup)	Common Bedstraw AKA Cleavers, Goosegrass Galium aparine Madder family
NOTES Tiny Bedstraw (Closeup)	Tiny Bedstraw AKA Yellow Wall Bedstraw Galium murale Madder family	NOTES Western Bittercress	Western Bittercress, Leaves AKA Toothwort Cardamine oligosperma Mustard family
Himalayan Blackberry (Closeup)	Himalayan Blackberry, Leaves Rubus discolor Rose family	NOTES Blue-Dick, white version AKA Common Brodiaea Dichelostemma capitatum Lily family
NOTES Buckbrush (Closeup)	Buckbrush, Leaves Ceanothus cuneatus Buckthorn family	NOTES California Buckeye (Closeup)	California Buckeye AKA Horse Chestnut Aesculus californica Buckeye family
California Buckeye, Leaves	California Buckeye	NOTES Bailey's Buckwheat (Closeup)	Bailey's Buckwheat, Leaves Eriogonum baileyi var. baileyi Buckwheat family
NOTES California Buckwheat (Closeup)	California Buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum Buckwheat family	NOTES Water Buttercup (Closeup)	Water Buttercup AKA Water Crowfoot Ranunculus aquatilis Buttercup family
NOTES Buttonbush (Closeup)	Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis Madder family	NOTES Bitter Cherry (Closeup)	Bitter Cherry Prunus emarginata Rose family
NOTES Bur Chervil (Closeup)	Bur Chervil AKA Burr Chervil Anthriscus caucalis Carrot family	NOTES Common Chickweed (Closeup)	Common Chickweed Stellaria media Pink family
NOTES Sticky Mouse-Ear Chickweed (Closeup)	Sticky Mouse-Ear Chickweed Cerastium glomeratum Pink family	NOTES Sticky Chinese Houses (Closeup)	Sticky Chinese Houses AKA Innocence, Tincture Plant Collinsia tinctoria Figwort family
NOTES Diamond Clarkia (Closeup)	Diamond Clarkia AKA Diamond Fairyfan Clarkia modesta Evening Primrose family	NOTES Dudley's Clarkia AKA Dudley's Fairyfan Clarkia dudleyana Evening Primrose family	Dudley's Clarkia, White variation Clarkia dudleyana Evening Primrose family
Dudley's Clarkia, another form (Closeup)	NOTES Williamson's Clarkia, Variant Clarkia williamsonii Evening Primrose family
NOTES Elegant Clarkia (Closeup)	Elegant Clarkia Clarkia elegans Evening Primrose family	Elegant Clarkia, Variant	Elegant Clarkia, Double
NOTES Clammy Clover (closeup)	Clammy Clover, Leaves AKA Creek Clover Trifolium obtusiflorum Pea family	NOTES Tomcat Clover (closeup)	Tomcat Clover, Leaves Trifolium willdenovii Pea family
NOTES White Clover* (closeup)	White Clover, Leaves* Trifolium repens Pea family	NOTES White Sweet Clover (Closeup)	White Sweet Clover, Leaves Melilotus alba Pea family
NOTES White-Tipped Clover (Closeup)	White-Tipped Clover, Leaves Trifolium variegatum Pea family	NOTES Cocklebur (Closeup)	Cocklebur, Leaves AKA Rough Cockleburr Xanthium strumarium Buttercup family
NOTES Slender Cottonweed (Closeup)	Slender Cottonweed, Leaves AKA Q-Tips, Cotton Top Micropus californicus Sunflower family	NOTES Cream Cup (Closeup)	Cream Cup, Leaves Platystemon californica Poppy family
Cryptantha sp., W02	Cryptantha sp., W02, Leaves	NOTES Wild Cucumber (Closeup)	Wild Cucumber, Leaves AKA California Manroot Marah fabaceus Cucumber family
NOTES Deerbrush (Closeup)	Deerbrush AKA Mountain Lilac, California Lilac Ceanothus integerrimus Buckthorn family	NOTES California Dodder, flower buds	California Dodder, twining Cuscuta californica Morning Glory family
Common Dodder, suckers	Common Dodder, infestation	NOTES Durango Root (Closeup)	Durango Root, Leaves Datisca glomerata Datisca family
NOTES Blue Elderberry, flowers	Blue Elderberry, Leaves Sambucus mexicana Honeysuckle family	Pearly Everlasting (Closeup)	Pearly Everlasting, Leaves Anaphalis margaritacea Sunflower family
NOTES Five Spot* (Closeup)	Five Spot* Nemophila maculata Waterleaf family	NOTES Threadstem Flax (Closeup)	Threadstem Flax AKA Small Flowered Dwarf Flax, Common Dwarf Flax, Small Flower Western Flax Hesperolinon micranthum Flax family
NOTES Bird's-Eye Gilia (Closeup)	Bird's-Eye Gilia Gilia tricolor Phlox family	NOTES Foothill Gilia (Closeup)	Foothill Gilia, Leaves AKA Blue Field Gilia, Globe Gilia Gilia capitata ssp. mediomontana Phlox family
NOTES California Wild Grape (Closeup)	California Wild Grape, Leaves Vitis californica Grape family	NOTES Whitestem Hedge-Nettle (Closeup)	Whitestem Hedge-Nettle AKA White Hedge-Nettle Stachys albens Mint family
NOTES Indian Hedge Mustard (Closeup)	Indian Hedge Mustard, Leaves AKA Hedge Mustard, Oriental Hedge Mustard Sisymbrium orientale Mustard family	NOTES Hedge-Parsley (Closeup)	Hedge-Parsley, Leaves Torilis arvensis Parsley family
Horehound (Closeup)	NOTES Horehound AKA Common Horehound, White Horehound Marrubium vulgare Mint family	NOTES Jimsonweed (Closeup)	Jimsonweed AKA Thorn-Apple Datura meteloides Nightshade family
NOTES Lacepod, Flower	Lacepod, Leaves AKA Fringepod Thysanocarpus curvipes Mustard family	NOTES Miner's Lettuce (Closeup)	Miner's Lettuce AKA Indian Lettuce, Spring Beauty Claytonia perfoliata Purslane family
NOTES Butterfly Mariposa Lily (Closeup)	Butterfly Mariposa Lily AKA Mariposa Lily, Square Mariposa Tulip Calochortus venustum Lily family	NOTES Spanish Lotus (Closeup)	Spanish Lotus AKA Spanish Clover Lotus purshianus var. purshianus Pea family
NOTES Whorled Lupine (Closeup)	Whorled Lupine AKA Whitewhorl Lupine Lupinus densiflorus var. aureus Pea family	NOTES Douglas' Meadow-Foam (Closeup)	Douglas' Meadow-Foam Limnanthes douglasii False Mermaid family
NOTES Narrow-Leaved Milkweed (Closeup)	Narrow-Leaved Milkweed Asclepias fascicularis Milkweed family	NOTES Common Muilla (Closeup)	Common Muilla Muilla maritima Amaryllis family
NOTES Turkey Mullein (Closeup)	Turkey Mullein AKA Doveweed Eremocarpus setigerus Croton family	NOTES Glassy Onion (Closeup)	Glassy Onion Allium hyalinum Amaryllis family
NOTES Pallid Owl's Clover (Closeup)	Pallid Owl's Clover Castilleja lineariloba AKA Valley Tassels, Thin-Lobed Owl's Clover, Sagebrush Indian Paintbrush Snapdragon family	NOTES Gaping Penstemon (Closeup)	Gaping Penstemon AKA Gaping Keckiella, Bush Beardtongue Keckiella breviflora var. breviflora Figwort family
NOTES Caterpillar Phacelia (Closeup	Caterpillar Phacelia, Leaves Phacelia cicutaria var. hispida Waterleaf family	NOTES Vari-Leaf Phacelia (Closeup)	Vari-Leaf Phacelia, Leaves Phacelia heterophylla Waterleaf family
NOTES Large Water Plantain (Closeup)	Large Water Plantain AKA Northern Water Plantain Alisma triviale Water Plantain family	NOTES Narrow-Leaved Plantain (Closeup)	Narrow-Leaved Plantain AKA English Plantain, Ribgrass Plantago lanceolata Plantain family
NOTES Poison Oak, Flowers	Poison Oak, Leaves Toxicodendron diversilobum Sumac family	NOTES Popcorn Flower (Closeup)	Popcorn Flower Plagiobothrys nothofulvus Forget-Me-Not family
NOTES California Poppy, White variation	California Poppy, White variation Eschscholzia californica Poppy family	NOTES Rattlesnake Weed (Closeup)	Rattlesnake Weed, Burs AKA American Wild Carrot Daucus pusillus Parsley family
NOTES Common Sandweed (Closeup)	Common Sandweed, Leaves Athysanus pusillus Mustard family	NOTES California Saxifrage (Closeup)	California Saxifrage Saxifraga californica Saxifrage family
NOTES Shepherd's Purse (Closeup)	Shepherd's Purse, Leaves Capsella bursa-pastoris Mustard family	NOTES Wavy-Leaved Soap Plant (Closeup)	Wavy-Leaved Soap Plant AKA Soaproot, Amole Chlorogalum pomeridianum Lily family
NOTES Spikerush (Closeup)	Spikerush, Leaves Eleocharis macrostachya Sedge family	NOTES Squawbush, Flowers (Closeup)	Squawbush, Leaves AKA Skunkbrush, Skunkbush Sumac Rhus trilobata Sumac family
NOTES Smooth Woodland Star (Closeup)	Smooth Woodland Star, Leaves AKA Sierra Star, Bolander's Woodland Star Lithophragma bolanderi Saxifrage family	NOTES Indian Tobacco (Closeup)	Indian Tobacco, Leaves Nicotiana quadrivalvis Nightshade family
NOTES Many-Flowered Tobacco (Closeup)	Many-Flowered Tobacco, Leaves Nicotiana acuminata var. multiflora Nightshade family	NOTES Watercress (Closeup)	Watercress Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum Mustard family
NOTES Yampa (Closeup)	Yampa AKA Yampah, Squawroot, Gairdner's Yampa Perideridia gairdneri Carrot family	Unidentified, W07* (Closeup)	Unidentified, W07* Poss. Microseris nutans or Spanish-Needles Palafoxia linearis Sunflower family
Unidentified, W28 (Closeup)	Unidentified, W28, Leaves	Unidentified, W30 (Closeup)	Unidentified, W30, Leaves
Unidentified, W31 (Closeup)	Unidentified, W31, Leaves	Unidentified, W32

NOTES:

Baby Blue-Eyes
Bloom: March–June
Description: Annual herb. Low plant, up to 1', with slender, leaning, branched stems. Leaves ½–3", opposite, pinnately divided into segments with teeth along edges. 5-petaled, pale or clear blue, bowl-shaped, ½–1", with white center; often with black speckles.
Special: Native. Starts easily from seed. Closely related to Five Spot and Fiesta Flower. These white variants are the only ones I've ever seen, just across Coarsegold Creek on the right. BACK
Bailey's Buckwheat
Description:   Annual herb.
Special: Native. BACK
Bird's-Eye Gilia
Bloom: March–April
Description: Annual, 4–12". Very narrow, threadlike leaves. Multicolored flowers; the narrow flower tube is yellow to orange, with 5 deep purple lines or splotches at its mouth. The 5 petals flare out of the tube into a shallow, dime-sized bowl. Petals are white (or pale blue) at the base, blending into blue-violet or pink at the tips. The 5 stamens, which alternate with the petals, add a final touch of color: The anthers are covered with deep-blue pollen. Several clusters of 2–5 flowers each branch off the slender stem.
Special: Flowers close up on cloudy days.   BACK
Bitter Cherry
Bloom: In Spring, with leaves
Description: Thicket-forming shrub or small tree to 20', with rounded crown, slender, upright branches, bitter foliage, and small, bitter cherries.
Leaves (1–2½") are oblong to elliptical, rounded or blunt at tip, short-pointed at base, with 1–2 dotlike glands; finely saw-toothed. Dark green above, paler and sometimes hairy beneath. Bark is dark brown, smooth; twigs are shiny red, slender, & hairy when young. Flowers ½" with 5 rounded white petals; 3–10 on slender stalks.
Special: Fruit is a round cherry, with thick red to black skin. The stone (seed) is poisonous, and all parts of the plant are intensely bitter. However, birds and mammals eat them, and foliage is browsed by deer and livestock.   BACK
Blue-Dick
Bloom: March�May
Description: Perennial herb, 12�24". Basal, grasslike leaves disappear early summer. Stem is leafless. �" tubular blue flowers are tightly clustered together.
Special: Native.   BACK
Blue Elderberry
Bloom: Early June
Description: Shrub or tree, many-branched, 6–12' (occasionally as tall as 25'). Leaves opposite, dark green, pinnately divided into 5–9 leaflets. Flowers are flat-topped clusters of creamy white.
Special: Native. Tart blue berries can be eaten raw or made into jam, jelly, pie, or wine. Elderberry likes moist flats or slopes & stream banks. All parts of this plant are poisonous. Even the berries, particularly if unripe, can cause stomach upsets, but ripe and/or cooked berries are said to be safe. Many folk remedies revolve around the elderberry, using all parts of the plant. Research before you try any.   BACK
Buckbrush
Bloom: Spring
Description: Perennial, to 11'. [More to come]
Special: Native.   BACK
Bur Chervil
Bloom:
Description:   Annual herb or vine.
Special: Not native. Disturbed places. BACK
Butterfly Mariposa Lily
Bloom: May–July
Description: 4–12". Perennial bulb. 3 white petals with a reddish inverted V near the base, and a yellow-bordered brown-purple spot above it. Petals penciled with purple near bases.
Special: Native, limited to California. These beautiful, intricately designed flowers also come in pink and yellow, but white is the most common form. Each flower seems to have a different design. BACK
Buttonbush
Bloom: May–August
Description: Shrub, 3–10', in wet places. White flowers are in round balls. The tubular flowers are about 1/3", each with a long, protruding style. Leaves egg-shaped, 3–6" long.
Special: Native. BACK
California Buckeye
Bloom: May–June
Description: Shrub or small tree, 25'. Large leaves, palmately compound with usually 7 leaflets, each about 6". The leaves look like the spread fingers of the hand. Showy flower clusters 6–8" long, tubular whitish or pale rose flowers with flared lobes. Later, flowers are replaced by glossy brown seeds in a leathery capsule. Bark is light gray, thin, smooth.
Special: Native; endemic. Enters dormancy in midsummer. Seeds are toxic, causing nausea, vomiting, & paralysis. Natives pulverized them and threw them into dammed pools & streams, stupefying fish, making them easy to catch. The nuts may be rendered edible by steaming for several hours until the consistency of a boiled potato, then either slicing or mashing them and leaching for several days. This treated starchy material may be eaten cold or made into cakes.   BACK
California Buckwheat
Bloom: May–August
Description: Annual or perennial herb or subshrub. Leaves entire, often with woolly hairs on at least one surface. Flowering stalks have only a few leaves or none. Flowers form tight balls or clusters, arranged in a terminal umbel, white in late spring, gradually turning pink in summer, and rust-colored in fall. The rusty flowers commonly stay on until the next spring.
Special: Native. Hardy and drought-tolerant. Stems of most Buckwheat spp. edible before flowering. Seeds edible when ground & used as flour. Flowers, leaves, & seeds are used by small animals. BACK
California Dodder
Bloom: July–October
Description: Annual herb or parasitic vine, leafless. Stems are creamy orange; flowers are tiny, whitish bell-shaped flowers in dense clusters. The seeds germinate in the soil, but the young plants rotate until they come into contact with a climbable host plant, adhering by suckers (haustoria), and the roots then wither away. Dodders spread virus diseases from one host to another.   BACK
California Poppy
Bloom: February–September
Description: Annual herb, sometimes perennial. Up to 2' tall, erect to sprawling. Leaves blue-green, finely dissected, alternate, mostly at base of stem. Flowers vary in color from buttery yellow to a crimson golden orange, 2–3" across, with 4 wedge-shaped petals. Sepals join into a cone that is pushed off as flower opens. Conspicuous flat, pinkish rim at ovary base. Flowers fold at night & on cloudy days.
Special: Native. State flower. Spanish name means poppy of the countryside. Natives used leaves & roots (mildly sedative & analgesic) for toothaches, headaches, spastic colon, & gallbladder ailments; fried petals in bear grease to make hair oil; cooked leaves for greens. However, herbage contains toxic alkaloids.   BACK
California Saxifrage
Bloom: February–March
Description: Perennial herb, to 1½'. Rosette of 2–4" ovate basal leaves, shallowly toothed or smooth, edges fringed with tiny white hairs. Slender, leafless stem is hairy & glandular, branches freely. Open branched inflorescence of many small (¼–½") white flowers of 5 elliptic or round petals & 10 yellow anthers.
Special: Native. Young leaves edible.   BACK
California Wild Grape
Bloom: May–June
Description: Vine to 40' (may also be a shrub). Flowers tiny, greenish clusters. Purple fruits, with white sheen, ¼–½". Leaves lobed, toothed, fuzzy below.
Special: Native. A wild grapevine may live for well over a century. BACK
Caterpillar Phacelia
Bloom: March–May
Description: Annual herb, 1–3'. Coiled flowers are dirty white or pale yellow. Leaves have oblong to lancelike leaflets with toothed margins. Stems may be erect or lean against banks.
Special: Native.   BACK
Clammy Clover
Description: Annual herb.
Special: Native. BACK
Cocklebur
Bloom: July–November
Description: Annual herb. Flowers minute, leaves broadly triangular. Large oblong burs have numerous stiff, hooked hairs.
Special: Native. BACK
Common Bedstraw
Bloom: March–July
Description: Annual herb, 1–3'. Tiny flowers. Leaves in 4's. Square stems.
Special: Native. Attaches to clothing by hooked prickles on stems.   BACK
Common Chickweed
Bloom: February–December
Description: Annual herb. White 5-petaled flowers are ¼", and deeply cleft so that the flower appears to have 10 petals. Opposite leaves are oval or elongate. Stems (to 2½') are weak, reclining.
Special: Not native. Young leaves edible raw, but said to taste better when boiled briefly in salted water.   BACK
Common Muilla

Bloom: March�June
Description: Annual, �–2'. Shiny, oval, white to greenish petals (3) are slightly united; each umbel contain 4–70 flowers. Leaves linear. Grassy places.   BACK

Cream Cup
Bloom: February–April
Description: Annual, 4�12". Stem densely hairy, bearing several flowers, drooping when in bud, milky sap. Leaves are narrow, undivided (2–3"), mostly lower. Buds are pink and hairy . Flowers are 1½", 6 creamy white petals with yellow basal spot. (Petal color varies from white to yellow, others with cream petals yellow at the base.)   BACK
Deerbrush
Bloom: April–June
Description: Shrub, openly branched. Up to 13', erect or spreading. Leaves lanceolate to ovate, alternate, to 2½", 3 main veins. Upper side darker than lower, which may be covered with fine, white hairs. Inflorescence is a branched cluster of white or pale blue saucer-shaped, fragrant flowers. The tiny flowers have 5 petal-like sepals and 5 spoon-shaped petals.
Special: Sweet, spicy honey scent. Some species have thorns. Natives hardened the branches with fire, then used them as digging sticks.   BACK
Diamond Clarkia
Bloom: April–May
Description: 1–2½'. Small, bright pink diamond-shaped petals (½"). Buds pendulous.
Special: Native. Dry slopes.   BACK
Douglas' Meadow-Foam
Bloom: March–May
Description: Annual herb. 4–16". Pinnate leaves 2–5", divided into jagged segments. Bowl-shaped flowers ¾", white-rimmed with yellow centers. 5 petals notched at tip, & have a U-shaped band of short hairs at the base. 10 stamens. 3–5 large nutlike seeds.
Special: Native.   BACK
Dudley's Clarkia

Bloom: May–July
Description: Annual herb. 1–2½'. Oblong petals lavender-pink with streaks of white (½–1"). Ovary 8-ribbed.
Special: Native; endemic to California. BACK

Durango Root
Bloom:   April–July
Description: Perennial herb. Grows mainly in wetlands, streamsides, or dry streambeds.
Special: Native. BACK
Elegant Clarkia
Bloom: June–July
Description: Slender plant 6–36", stems often stout. A few lanceolate leaves (¾–3") with buds nodding along an erect raceme of a few flowers. Flowers are 4-petaled (1–1½") with circular, diamond-shaped, or broadly triangular ends with a reddish blotch, and narrowly stalked bases.   BACK
Five Spot
Bloom: April–July
Description: Annual. Often sprawling, up to 1'. Leaves 1", lobed, opposite. S aucer-shaped corolla to 2", with large purple spot on each of 5 petal tips.
Special: Young leaves edible raw or cooked.   BACK
Foothill Gilia
Bloom: April–August
Description: ½–3'. Round balls of pale blue flowers on tall, erect stems. Leaves linear-lobed, pinnate. Grassy hillsides.
Special: Annual herb. Native; endemic to California.   BACK
Gaping Penstemon
Bloom: May–July
Description: Shrub up to 6' tall. White to pinkish tubular flowers are ¾" long, 2-lipped. Upper lip curved in the shape of a beak; lower lip has 3 reflexed lobes. Lobes have purple or pink lines that serve as nectar guides for pollinating insects. Leaves are opposite, lanceolate, up to 1½" long, and appear to have a waxy coating.
Special: Our species varies somewhat from this description.   BACK
Glassy Onion
Bloom: March–June
Description: Flat, pale pink to pale white flowers have nearly round tepals with a glassy shine. 6–15 flowers form in a loose umbel. Tepals are roundish rather than pointed. Leaves grasslike, usually not as tall as flowers.
Special: Onion odor & flavor.   BACK
Hedge-Parsley
Bloom:
Description: Annual herb. 1–4'. Hairy herb. Flowers are arranged in umbels. Branched stems, mostly erect. Leaves once or twice pinnate. Fruits flat-oval, tiny, bristled.
Special: Not native. Invasive.   BACK
Horehound

Bloom: All Year
Description: Annual herb, 1�3'. Numerous tiny white flowers in circles around a square stem. Gray oval leaves, in pairs, have a crinkly surface.
Special:   Not native; invasive. Disturbed places. BACK
Indian Hedge Mustard

Bloom: Spring�Summer
Description:   Tall annual or perennial herb. 4-petaled white flowers. Rosette of jagged basal leaves, purple at the center.
Special:   Not native.    BACK
Indian Tobacco
Bloom: May–October
Description: 1–4'. Long, slender, white to greenish trumpetlike flowers with long petals. Leaves oblong to oval. Sticky-haired and bad smelling. lower ones on broad, flat stalks, upper without stalks. Flowers white, trumpet-shaped, in a loosely branched cluster.
Special: Native. Seeds bristly.   BACK
Jimsonweed
Bloom: April–October
Description: Annual or perennial. Spreading, up to 5', strong odor. Leaves ovate, to 8", often with wavy margins. Funnel-shaped flowers are solitary, to 8". Corolla has 5 evenly spaced points, ¾" long on the edge. Fruit is egg-shaped with prickles, 1", filled with tan seeds.
Special: Natives used roots to make a drink consumed in a once-in-a-lifetime ceremonial event, or when a medical situation warranted a strong painkiller.   BACK
Lacepod
Bloom: One of the earliest spring plants
Description: To 2'. Stem bears numerous tiny (less than 1/8") white, sometimes purple-tinged) flowers hanging from slender pedicels. Its fruits are conspicuous ¼–½" "flying saucers." Each silicle is flat and circular with a green center from which radiate numerous narrow spokes. The spokes are connected by a papery white membrane tinged pink-purple at the periphery.
Special: Seeds may be parched & eaten, or ground and mixed with flour.   BACK
Large Water Plantain
Bloom: June–September
Description:   8"–3'. White flowers with three petals (½") on greatly branched stems.
Special: Perennial, native. Aquatic; grows in shallow water, mud. BACK
Many-Flowered Tobacco
Bloom: May–October
Description: Annual herb, 1–4'. Long, slender, white to greenish trumpetlike flowers with long petals. Leaves oblong to oval. Sticky-haired and bad smelling. lower ones on broad, flat stalks, upper without stalks. Flowers white, trumpet-shaped, in a loosely branched cluster.
Special: Not native.    BACK
Miner's Lettuce
Bloom: April–June
Description: 4–10". Two round, fleshy leaves on an otherwise bare stem unite to form a saucer or cup ½–2" beneath the sprig of flowers. The tiny flowers have ¼" pale pink or white petals & 2 green sepals.
Special: Miners, & natives before them, used the leaves as salad greens. Prefers shady places. BACK
Narrow-Leaved Milkweed
Bloom: June–September
Description: 4–12". Flowers white to greenish or purple tinted. Long linear leaves in whorls of 3–6, usually hairless & folded upward.   BACK
Narrow-Leaved Plantain
Bloom: April–August
Description: 6–24". Tiny white 4-petaled flowers projecting on hairlike stalks from a spike ¾–3" long. Basal leaves are 2–16" long, lanceolate, dark green, with parallel veins.
Special: Not native. Invasive.   BACK
Pallid Owl's Clover
Bloom:   March–June
Description:   Annual herb. Flower bract tips are white. The 3 corolla sacs are yellow with purple spots. Lower leaves are linear; upper have 2 or 3 pairs of threadlike lobes.
Special: Native; endemic.   BACK
Pearly Everlasting
Bloom: June–August
Description: Perennial. Up to 45". Erect, white, woolly. Leaves simple, 1–3" long, linear to lanceolate, alternate. Basal leaves die back. Inflorescence is a cluster of flower heads under ½" with pearly white bracts surrounding small flowers.
Special: Foliage & flowers often smell like maple syrup or curry. Natives used leaves as a general antiseptic and chewed them to treat mouth ulcers. Foliage also has been used as tobacco substitute. Painted Lady & American Lady butterflies feed on this plant. Moths are drawn by the nectar at night, butterflies by day.   BACK
Poison Oak
Bloom: May
Description: Woody shrub or climbing vine. Early in season, leaves (in sets of 3 leaflets) are bright green, reddish later. Whitish inflorescence insignificant.
Special: The plant's oils cause irritating dermatitis, & the entire plant should be avoided.   BACK
Popcorn Flower
Bloom: March–May
Description: Annual, biennial, or perennial. Ascending to erect. Hairy; leaves linear or oblong, opposite at base & alternate along stem. Basal rosette has pale yellow hairs. Inflorescence is a dense to open coiled cyme. Each white flower is small and trumpet-shaped with 5 lobes. Inside the throat is a yellow raised ring.
Special: Many species have a purple dye in the stem & roots. When pressed & dried in a folded sheet of clean paper, a striking mirror-image pattern results.   BACK
Rattlesnake Weed
Bloom: April–June
Description: 1–3'. Annual hairy herb. White flowers in an umbel, with many 3-forked bracts below. When mature, the flower umbrel turns brownish and folds into a cup shape. Leaves are pinnately compound, and when crushed, smell like carrots.
Special: Roots were eaten by Native Americans. Its burs readily stick to clothing.   BACK
Shepherd's Purse
Bloom: February–December
Description: Annual herb, ½–2'. Flowers tiny & cream-colored, clustered atop the stem. Basal leaves similar to dandelion. Upper leaves smaller, clasping. Seedpods distinctive, shaped like little hearts.
Special: Not native. BACK
Slender Cottonweed
Bloom: April–June
Description: Annual herb. Flowerheads resemble very small cotton balls, often rounded with cottony white hairs forming the pappus of each seed.
Special: Native.   BACK
Smooth Woodland Star
Bloom: March–May
Description: 1–3'. Showy ½" 5-petaled flowers, unlobed and without fringes, are arranged alternately along the upper part of stem.
Special: Native perennial herb, limited to California. Fringed Woodland Star, Lithophragma parviflorum, is very similar and more well known. BACK
Spanish Lotus
Bloom:   May–October
Description: Annual herb. ½–3', prostrate to erect. One pale-rose flower (corolla yellow to pink) with 1 leaflike bract on a long pedicel above the 3 lancelike leaflets. Numerous long pale gray hairs.
Special: Native.   BACK
Spikerush

Description: Perennial rhizotamous herb, a species of spikesedge, 2–3'; wetlands. Bright green erect stems, straw-colored basal leaves. Each stem top has a narrow inflorescence with at least ten flowers, each covered with a purplish-brown bract. The fruit is a yellow or yellow-brown achene with a whitish cone-shaped tubercle on one end.
Special: Native. BACK

Squawbush
Bloom: February–June
Description: Deciduous shrub with clumping habit.
Special: Native. Related to Poison Oak, but does not cause rash for most people. Brilliant yellow to red fall color.   BACK
Sticky Chinese Houses
Bloom: May–August
Description: Annual. Up to 2'. Glandular, with opposite, lanceolate leaves up to 3", hairy beneath. Inflorescence consists of flowers in widely spaced bands around each stem. Each flower is tubular, 1", 2-lipped; upper is 2-lobed (white, lavender, or purple-spotted); lower is 3-lobed (although it looks like two), white to rose-purple.
Special: Native; endemic. The crushed flowers, leaves, & stems stain yellow-brown. The name comes from the spacing of the flowers around the stems, which looks like a Chinese pagoda.   BACK
Sticky Mouse-Ear Chickweed
Bloom: February–June
Description: 4–12". Small white flowers have sharply pointed sepals from long, sticky hairs. Petals notched, often shorter than sepals. Leaves are oval and opposite. Stem erect, sticky haired.
Special: Closely related to Common Chickweed, but a different genus.   BACK
Threadstem Flax
Bloom: May–July
Description: Annual herb, 2�15". 5-petaled flowers white to pale pink. Leaves linear and threadlike. Stems widely branching and threadlike with many small flowers.
Special: Native.   BACK
Tiny Bedstraw
Bloom: March–July
Description: Annual herb, 1–3'. Tiny flowers. Leaves in 4's. S quare stems.
Special: Not native. Attaches to clothing by hooked prickles on stems.   BACK
Tomcat Clover
Bloom: April–June
Description: Annual herb, ½–2'. Stems erect to decumbent. Leaves narrowly lancelike. Corolla red-purple with white tips.
Special: Native. Edible raw but may cause bloat if eaten in large quantities. To avoid this, leaves may be steamed or cooked or soaked for several hours in salt water. P repared in these ways, clover makes an excellent protein supplement. Prepared leaves may be dried & stored. A tea may be made from dried flower heads. Seeds are also edible.   BACK
Turkey Mullein
Bloom: May–October
Description: Annual herb, 1–3'. Stem much-branched from base, forming dense rounded clumps. Rosette of gray-green oval leaves with long petioles. White flowers tiny, in terminal cymes.
Special: Native. Familiar late-summer weed. Herbage poisonous; used by natives to stupefy fish. Seeds eaten by birds, including quail.   BACK
Vari-Leaf Phacelia
Bloom: May–July
Description: 1–4'. Perennial herb. Flowers white to greenish-yellow on a single, erect column. Leaves 3-lobed, with the terminal leaflet being large.
Special: Native. Likes rocky places. BACK
Water Buttercup
Bloom: May–August
Description: Perennial herb. Flowers ½–¾". 5 petals are white, with yellow at the base. Leaves float on or under water surface and have finely divided segments (floating leaves less divided).
Special: Native. Plants form dense beds in ponds or slow-moving streams. Flowers may rise 1" above water, and may even bloom underwater.   BACK
Watercress
Bloom: All year
Description: Perennial herb, 1–2'. Small white flower clusters. Sprawling, succulent stems with pinnate leaves. Each leaf has 3–9 oval leaflets.
Special: Native. Requires quietly running water, so it is seasonal here. In fact, 2005 was the first year I've seen it.   BACK
Wavy-Leaved Soap Plant
Bloom: March–July
Description: Perennial herb, from a large bulb (6" with fibrous coat). Single stout, leafless flower stem, 2–5'. Leaves linear, basal, up to 3', with wavy margins. Inflorescence is a branched panicle of 15–25 starlike flowers, ½–1", white, with a green or purple midvein (often completely curled). Each flower has 3 petal-like sepals and 3 petals.
Special: Native. Flowers open in evening & close by midmorning; they are pollinated by moths. Many uses by natives: Glue and soap; bulb fibers made into brushes; uncooked bulbs grated & used to wash clothes; crushed bulbs put in streams to make a lather that stuns fish. Roasted bulbs produced a glue for attaching feathers to arrow shafts, and to treat poison oak rash. Bulbs could be eaten after boiling or roasting to remove saponins. Larvae of brown elfin butterfly feed on this plant.   BACK
Western Bittercress
Bloom: March–July
Description: Annual or perennial herb, 1–12". White flowers, 2–10 per raceme. Pinnate leaves have 5–9 rounded leaflets. Most of the leaves are in a loose basal rosette.
Special:   Native. Linear seedpods pop when disturbed. Mostly found in wetlands.   BACK
White Clover
Bloom: April–September
Description: Creeper, leaves compound with 3 broad leaflets ½–¾", with tiny teeth on edges. Flowers are round heads of tiny, clustered pea flowers, white or very pale pink. Heads are about ½".
Special: Not native. Animals pastured on it develop extreme skin sensitivity to sunlight.   BACK
Whitestem Hedge-Nettle
Bloom: May–June
Description: Perennial herb. Small pale pink flowers with projecting, scooplike lower lips, with the flower tube hidden in the calyx. 4 stamens. Scalloped leaves and stem are covered with soft white hair.
Special: Native. Found in damp streambottoms.   BACK
White Sweet Clover
Bloom: May–October
Description: 2–10'. Widely branched, leafy plant (divided into 3 lanceolate leaflets, each ¾–1¼", with teeth on edges. White flowers are in racemes 1½–5"; individual flowers are less than ¼".
Special: Not native. Scent resembles newly mown hay. Young leaves may be eaten raw or boiled, but mature leaves & stems contain coumarin (an anticoagulant), toxic in moderate amounts. Fruit may be used as seasoning for soups.   BACK
White-Tipped Clover

Bloom: April–July
Description: Annual herb, 4–16". Flowers red-purple, white- or pink-tipped. Calyx lobes broadly triangular with a single long spine. Leaflets narrowly oblong, coarsely sawtoothed.
Special: Native. BACK

Whorled Lupine
Bloom: April–June
Description: Annual herb. 2–3' stem, the upper portion bearing dense whorls of white ½–¾" flowers. Palmately compound leaves occur at the base of the plants and alternately along the stem but tend to cluster near the top. Leaf stems and undersides, stems, flowers, and stalks are densely hairy and give the plant a distinctive, easily identifiable look. Egg-shaped pods contain one or Special: Native. Egg-shaped pods contain two seeds.   BACK
Wild Cucumber
Bloom: Midspring–Early Summer
Description: 6–20'. Vine. Male flowers are flat white stars. Large leaves have 5–7 pointed lobes and a U-shaped base. The melon is globe-shaped with many surface spines. Inside are 4 large seeds.
Special: Native. Seed is poisonous if ingested.   BACK
Williamson's Clarkia
Bloom: May–July
Description: Annual herb, 12". Purple fan-shaped petals, lighter near the center, with a dark purple splotch along the upper edge. Leaves linear.
Special: Native; endemic. BACK
Yampa
Bloom:   June–August
Description: 1–4'. White, flat-topped flower umbels are graceful on slender stems. Stems smooth & slender, nearly leafless. Pinnate leaves divided 1מ times.
Special: Native. Was a main food staple for native people and early settlers. The root, which has a sweet and nutty flavor, can be eaten raw or cooked, or can be dried or ground into a powder. It is said to be good for sore throats and coughs. The young leaves are edible, and the seeds can be used like caraway seeds.   BACK

NOTES:

Bloom: March�June Description: Annual, �–2'. Shiny, oval, white to greenish petals (3) are slightly united; each umbel contain 4–70 flowers. Leaves linear. Grassy places. BACK

Bloom: March�June
Description: Annual, �–2'. Shiny, oval, white to greenish petals (3) are slightly united; each umbel contain 4–70 flowers. Leaves linear. Grassy places. BACK