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California Goldfields
Lasthenia californica
  
12 Nurseries Carry This Plant

About California Goldfields (Lasthenia californica) 12 Nurseries Carry This Plant California Goldfields (Lasthenia californica) is a widespread species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae (Sunflower) family, among a number of species in the genus Lasthenia, all known by the common name goldfields. This species is native to a large part of California, Oregon, and surrounding areas, where it is a very common member of the flora in a number of habitat types.

This is an annual herb is quite variable in appearance across locations and climates. The leaves are hairy, somewhat linear in shape. Individuals growing along the coast may have fleshy leaves.

Atop the hairy stems are flower clusters of flower heads with hairy phyllaries (leaf-like structures at the base of the flower). The head contains many yellow disc florets with a fringe of small ray florets. Large populations of this species bloom at one time in the spring, producing the carpets of yellow on hillsides and in meadows that give the plant its common name. In the garden, it is most often grown from seed, which germinates readily.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Annual herb

Size
Size
0.5 - 1.3 ft tall
.5 ft wide

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Fast

Flower Color
Flower Color
Yellow

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

Wildlife Supported
 
Numerous insects including bees and butterflies are attracted to the flowers

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 1 likely * ) SHOW ALL
*
Heliothodes diminutivus Image
Small Heliothodes Moth Heliothodes diminutivusHeliothodes diminutivus

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Part Shade, Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Very Low, Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 2x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries
Carried by 12

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Medium

Soil Description
Soil Description
Variable

Common uses
Common uses
Butterfly Gardens, Bee Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Goldfields occurs with many other plants, but in the garden it is best used in a dense patch with other annuals such as Blue Gilia (Gilia capitata), Baby Blue-eyes (Nemophila menziesii), Clarkia spp., Lupines (Lupinus spp.), Checkerbloom (Sidalcea spp.), as well as succulents such as Dudleya spp. and Sedum spp.

Propagation
Propagation?
By seed

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
7*, 8*, 9*, 10*, 11, 12, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Many settings including coastal prarie, meadows, flats, native grasslands, damp areas, woodland understory, along the immediate coast, Coast Ranges, and Sierra foothills

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 4.3" - 111.1", Summer Precipitation: 0.13" - 3.29", Coldest Month: 38.1" - 59.1", Hottest Month: 55.6" - 87.6", Humidity: 0.01" - 38.46", Elevation: -75" - 7267"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Common Goldfields, Valley Goldfields


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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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