Reminds me of Crithmum maritimum but I don't know if that's likely there. Btw I looked up Balboa Park and couldn't find reference to a Healing Garden. Can you tell us more about it?

Thanks floral_uk. Colloquially called the healing garden as it is more than just trees per its official name. https://goo.gl/maps/1F3H1iaszAvyuf2s5 That is the location. I've nabbed quite a few exotic seeds from there that I could not find anywhere else. Quite a nifty selection of plants. Although you may have nailed it w/ Crithmum maritimum, those leaves and seeds look identical. Thank you!

Interesting. They have a website that includes a very comprehensive plant finder list/map. Crithmum maritimum is in the alphabetical list under its common name of Samphire.

Trees For Health

I've used the tree finder map, but not the general plant finder. Learn something new everyday. Thanks!

http://www.treesandiego.org/tree-tracker

Just a point if information. There are two plants commonly called Samphire. This one is Rock Samphire and the other is Marsh Samphire, Salicornia europaea. (That's the species we get. There are other Salicornias). Both are edible but the latter is a real delicacy and sold by fishmongers here. They occupy very different habitats although both are coastal plants.

Yes, the one we commonly see (and eat!) here is the Crithmum maritimum, 'Rock Samphire'. To add confusion, it's also often called Sea Fennel.

ETA, just read that it's a facultative halophyte. That clears it up for me. :>O

My, what a great discussion. Thank you everyone. I had never come across samphire despite its obvious ubiquity. Now I want to eat it! And floral_uk, the Shakespeare excerpt was the icing on the cake. Always amazed at how well he wove plants into his plays.