Field studies in Butte County, CA, starting in 2009, with more detailed investigations in 2019–2023, indicate that the poorly known Dicentra pauciflora S.Watson (Papaveraceae) is critically reliant upon asexual reproduction from bulblets and rhizomes rather than seed production for survival. This is in direct contrast to two other geophytic Dicentra species at the same sites which use both seeds and underground structures for reproduction. After snowmelt, D. pauciflora proceeded from leaf emergence to flowering and senescence in only 5 to 6 wk. Flowering was infrequent, with the number of flowers at one to three per stalk. The mean number of ovules was 26.8 to 32.3 per flower in three survey years, and very few matured into ripe seeds. Of the ovules, 98% were undeveloped, and seed set was below 2%. However, field plantings of rhizomes and bulblets demonstrated this successful means of asexual reproduction in D. pauciflora. Measurements of the sizes and types of rhizomes and bulblets in flowering and nonflowering plants suggest that it may take a decade for this species to flower. Total rhizome length of 30 to 36 mm was found to be a likely minimum requirement for flowering. Slow growth, primarily by underground rhizomes, may limit dispersal within its range in California and southern Oregon. Rhizomes and bulblets averaged 2.4 cm deep in the soil beneath the forest duff and survived the Dixie Fire in 2021 at the study sites. Underground growth is perhaps one important factor to its long-term survival in the changing environment of northern California.