Taxon Report

Potentilla hickmanii Eastw.

Hickman's cinquefoil

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Potentilla hickmanii, commonly known as Hickman's cinquefoil, is a perennial herb in the Rosaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Closed-cone coniferous forest, Coastal bluff scrub, Marshes and swamps (freshwater), and Meadows and seeps (vernally mesic), growing at elevations from 10 to 149 meters. Potentilla hickmanii is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Potentilla hickmanii Eastw.
Common Name:	Hickman's cinquefoil
Family:	Rosaceae
Element Code:	PDROS1B370
USDA Plants Symbol:	POHI5
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial herb
Blooming Period: Apr-Aug	Apr-Aug
Elevation:	10-149 (35-490)
General Habitats:	Closed-cone coniferous forest, Coastal bluff scrub, Marshes and swamps, Meadows and seeps
Microhabitat:
Microhabitat Details:

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Global Rank:	G1
State Rank:	S1
State List:	CE
Fed List:	FE
Other Status:	SB_UCBG
CRPR Changes:

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	4
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	0
Good (B)	1
Fair (C)	1
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	2
Unknown (U)	0

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Monterey (MNT), San Mateo (SMT)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Montara Mountain (3712254), Monterey (3612158)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	7
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	4	100 %
Foot traffic/trampling	2	50%
Development	2	50%
Erosion/runoff	1	25%
Altered flood/tidal/hydrologic regime	1	25%
Non-native plant impacts	1	25%
Other	1	25%
Recreational use (non-ORV)	1	25%

Notes



Seriously threatened by urbanization, recreational activities, non-native grasses, grazing, and the proposed Devil's Slide Bypass highway project. Collections from SON Co. are actually P. uliginosa. See Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 29:77-78 (1902) for original description, and Fremontia 21(1):25-29 (1993) and 24(1):3-11 (1996) for species accounts.
Threats:

Taxonomy:

Selected References

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 27 October 2025].