Calflora

Information on wild California plants for conservation, education, and appreciation.

08/28/2026

Plant names change. Calflora keeps up.
Hundreds of new and updated plant names are now in Calflora!
Search Calflora using a plant's current or former scientific name --or by its common name. We regularly incorporate taxonomic updates from Jepson eFlora, USDA PLANTS, Plants of the World Online (Kew Gardens), and iNaturalist.
Here are a few of the plants with newly added or updated names:

08/23/2026

Happy Anniversary to Our State Grass! August 23 marks the 22nd anniversary of the signing of legislation designating Stipa pulchra, or purple needlegrass, as CA’s official state grass.

A long-lived perennial bunchgrass, Stipa pulchra is one of California’s most widespread native grasses. It grows from the Oregon border to N. Baja CA in habitats ranging from grasslands and coastal sage scrub to chaparral, oak woodland, and coastal prairie.

Some Stipa pulchra plants may survive 150+ years. Their roots can extend 1 to 5 meters underground, helping them persist through California’s long dry summers. The long awns twist when dry and straighten with moisture. As they repeatedly twist and untwist, they help “drill” the sharply pointed seeds into the soil.

The next time you encounter this graceful bunchgrass, consider that its roots may reach meters below you and the plant itself may have been growing in that spot for a century. Thanks to the California Native Grasslands Association for inspiring this anniversary celebration!

08/17/2026

Meet Durango Root: A Surprisingly Unusual California Native! https://conta.cc/4wKagj2

08/12/2026

Every California wild plant has its own Plant Range page. Try it yourself! https://www.calflora.org/search.html

08/04/2026

Esme Perkins is Calflora's newest programmer! She was drawn to Calflora’s status as an independent, science-based nonprofit and was looking for a role where the code she writes has a tangible impact on conservation and education. During her interview, she shared, “I want to work at a place that has a soul.” We’re delighted she found Calflora.

07/27/2026

Summer is peak Lily season in California. CA is home to many native lily species, from the endangered Western lily of the North Coast to brilliant leopard lilies that tower above mountain meadows. Explore their photos, bloom periods, distributions, and more on Calflora: https://conta.cc/4w8zQhu

07/14/2026

New Taxon Page: Saururus cernuus (Lizard's Tail)
Calflora staff just added a new taxon page for Saururus cernuus, commonly known as Lizard's tail. Native to wetlands in the eastern United States, this striking perennial was recently discovered growing in a canal in Los Gatos: the first confirmed California record.

Valley Water botanist Jennifer Mo noticed the unusual plant and notified Santa Clara County Ag. They headed out immediately, collected a sample, and sent it to CDFA, who confirmed her suspected Saururus cernuus ID.

Lizard's tail spreads via rhizomes and readily establishes from plant fragments. This new Calflora taxon page brings together photos, maps, taxonomy, providing resources to help botanists, land managers, and community scientists recognize and report and hopefully control this noteworthy non-native newcomer.

07/10/2026

Calflora Gear is Here! https://calflora.myshopify.com/search?type=product&q=

06/30/2026

Bryophyte (liverwort, to be specific) Asterellopsis palmeri photo by Duncan Bell😍https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=14330

06/22/2026

Keir Morse's Melica californica (CA melic) won the Calflora Photo Contest: CONGRATS, Keir!

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