logo Calflora, a 501c3 non-profit
Taxon  Report  
Claytonia perfoliata  Donn ex Willd.
Miners lettuce,   Miner's lettuce,   Rooreh (Ohlone)
Claytonia perfoliata is an annual herb that is native to California, and also found elsewhere in western North America.
Siskiyou Del Norte Modoc Humboldt Shasta Lassen Trinity Plumas Tehama Butte Mendocino Glenn Sierra Yuba Lake Nevada Colusa Placer Sutter El Dorado Yolo Alpine Napa Sonoma Sacramento Mono Amador Solano Calaveras Tuolumne San Joaquin Marin Contra Costa Alameda Santa Cruz Mariposa Madera San Francisco San Mateo Merced Fresno Stanislaus Santa Clara Inyo San Benito Tulare Kings Monterey San Bernardino San Luis Obispo Kern Santa Barbara Ventura Los Angeles Riverside Orange San Diego Imperial
DJJJASONAFMM

Bloom Period
Subspecies and Varieties:
Genus: Claytonia
Family: Montiaceae  
(Portulacaceae)
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Dicot
Jepson eFlora section: eudicot

Wetlands: Equally likely to occur in wetlands and non wetlands

Communities: Coastal Sage Scrub, Yellow Pine Forest, Red Fir Forest, Mixed Evergreen Forest, Foothill Woodland, Chaparral, Pinyon-Juniper Woodland, Joshua Tree Woodland

Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + PLANTS

Information about  Claytonia perfoliata from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
This plant is available commercially.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (CLPE)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net

[Wikipedia] Edibility, Range, Habitat, Other Names: Claytonia perfoliata, commonly known as miner's lettuce, Indian lettuce, or winter purslane, is a flowering plant in the family Montiaceae. It is an edible, fleshy, herbaceous, annual plant native to the western mountain and coastal regions of North America. C. perfoliata is common in the springtime, and prefers a cool, damp environment. The plant first appears in sunlit areas after the first heavy rains of the year, though the best stands are found in shaded areas, especially in the uplands, into early summer. As the days get hotter and drier, the leaves turn a deep red color as they dry out. C. perfoliata is called 'piyada' in the Western Mono language and palsingat in Ivilyuat - two Native American languages of California[6] or rooreh in (Ohlone language)[7] Uses Miner's lettuce served as a salad The common name of miner's lettuce refers to how the plant was used by miners during the California Gold Rush, who ate it to prevent scurvy.[13][14][15] It is in season in April and May, and can be eaten as a leaf vegetable.[16] The entire plant is edible, except the roots, and it provides vitamin C.[17] Most commonly, it is eaten raw in salads, but it is not quite as delicate as cultivated lettuce. Sometimes, it is boiled like spinach, which it resembles in taste and chemical composition. Caution should be used because wild C. perfoliata can sometimes accumulate toxic amounts of soluble oxalates (also present in spinach).[18] (contributed by Mary Ann Machi)


Suggested Citation
Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2024. Berkeley, California: The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/   (Accessed: 03/28/2024).