''Clarkia prostrata'' is a species of flowering plant in the evening primrose family known by the common name prostrate clarkia. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the coastline of

San Luis Obispo County, California San Luis Obispo County (), officially the County of San Luis Obispo, is a County (United States), county on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 282, ...

, where it grows on seaside bluffs in forested and grassy areas. This annual herb is prostrate as opposed to erect as most other ''Clarkia'' species are. Its stems extend to a maximum length approaching half a meter and are usually somewhat fuzzy in texture. The leaves are oval in shape, up to 2.5 centimeters long, and lack petioles. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s of the flower separate into two pairs, revealing the lavender-pink blooming petals. Each petal is just over a centimeter long, fan-shaped to oval, and sometimes with a yellow base marked with a red spot.

References

External links

Jepson Manual ProfilePhoto gallery
prostrata Flora of California Plants described in 1953 {{Myrtales-stub