Semi-desert, foothills, lower montane. Shrublands, sand, woodlands. Summer, fall.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, September 10, 2010.

Eriogonum cernuum is a delicate, many-flowered plant of open sandy grasslands, shrublands, and lower altitude forests.  Though it can be abundant in certain habitats, it is so slim and has such minute flowers that it is often overlooked.  It typically grows to about ten inches tall (as pictured here) but can be nearly twenty inches tall. 

Stem leaves are usually lacking and the round, very hairy, basal leaves may be green and present, dried, or absent at flowering time.  Be sure to take a look at the leaves with a hand lens.  

When you find one plant, be sure to stop and search for more.  Almost always you will find many other Eriogonum cernuum plants in the area.  

Eriogonum cernuum ages to subtle maroons.  Notice also that the basal leaves are dried and curled, in contrast to the leaves shown in the top photograph.

, it colors the land with a maroon tinge, as it did in the open meadows along the Murphy Trail where this picture was taken.

Semi-desert, foothills, lower montane. Shrublands, sand, woodlands. Summer, fall.
Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, October 21, 2010.

It is easy to spot the numerous Eriogonum cernuum plants in this photograph, but in the field it is actually quite difficult to see them as they are so slender and blend with the soils so well.  You can see the difficulty if you look at the plants in front of the black micro-biotic soil crust at the very top of the photograph.

Range map © John Kartesz,
Floristic Synthesis of North America

State Color Key

Species present in state and native
Species present in state and exotic
Species not present in state

County Color Key

Species present and not rare
Species present and rare
Species extirpated (historic)
Species extinct
Species noxious
Species exotic and present
Native species, but adventive in state
Eradicated
Questionable presence

Range map for Eriogonum cernuum