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Taxon  Report  
Collinsia multicolor  Lindl. & Paxton
San Francisco blue eyed mary,   San Francisco collinsia
Collinsia multicolor is an annual herb that is native to California, and endemic (limited) to California.
also called Collinsia franciscana
California Rare Plant Rank: 1B.2 (rare, threatened, or endangered in CA and elsewhere).
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
Observation Search
~116 records in California
yellowone or more occurrences
within a 7.5-minute quadrangle
DJJJASONAFMM

Bloom Period
Genus: Collinsia
Family: Plantaginaceae  
(Scrophulariaceae)
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Dicot
Jepson eFlora section: eudicot

Ultramafic affinity: 1.1 - weak indicator / indifferent

Communities: Northern Coastal Scrub, Closed-cone Pine Forest

Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + CNPS + PLANTS

Alternate Names:
JEF + CNPS + PLANTSCollinsia franciscana
Information about  Collinsia multicolor from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
Commercial availability unknown.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (COMU)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net

[Wikipedia] Range, Description: Collinsia multicolor is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, known by the common names San Francisco blue eyed Mary[2] and San Francisco collinsia. It is endemic to the San Francisco Bay Area, where it is known from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. As of 2008 there are 22 known occurrences.[3] Populations south of Santa Cruz have been extirpated.[4] The plant grows in coniferous forests and shady, moist habitats of the coastal chaparral scrub. Description Collinsia multicolor is an annual herb producing a delicate, slender stem 30 to 60 centimeters tall. The upper parts of the stem are hairy and sticky with glands. The oppositely arranged leaves are triangular lance-shaped with serrated edges, each pair clasping the stem where they meet. The inflorescence is a series of whorls or clusters of flowers, the lower series bearing one or two flowers and the upper bearing several in a whorl. Each flower arises on a pedicel. The corolla is between one and two centimeters long and has two white upper lobes sometimes dotted with purple and three lavender to purple lower lobes. This plant was first described by the English architect Joseph Paxton in association with John Lindley. (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: 04/25/2024).