Penstemon payettensis

Penstemon payettensis
Boise National Forest, Idaho
Apparently Secure
Apparently Secure (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Penstemon
Species:
P. payettensis
Binomial name
Penstemon payettensis

Penstemon payettensis, the Payette penstemon, is a species in the veronica family from the northwestern United States in Oregon, Idaho, and Montana.

Description

Payette penstemons are herbaceous plants that produce one or more flowering stems that are typically 30 to 70 centimeters (12–28 in) tall,[2] though occasionally only 15 cm (6 in) at full growth.[3] It has a taproot topped by a thick, woody caudex that can have short branches. Both the stems and the leaves are hairless and not glaucous.[2]

The species has both cauline, leaves on its flowering stems, and basal leaves. The lower cauline and basal leaves are ovate to elliptic in shape measuring 8–18 centimeters (3–7 in), though usually not longer than 14 cm (5.5 in), with a width of 1–4 cm (0.5–1.5 in). The stems have five to seven leaf pairs attached to opposite sides, with the upper ones 2.8–11 cm (1–4.5 in) long and 0.6–4.2 cm wide, though more typically 4–8 cm long and less than 3 cm wide.[3]

The flowers are bright blue and usually tinted purple on part of the bloom.[4] The corolla is 1.8–2.2 cm long and does not have floral guide lines. They are typically arranged in four to ten groups on the upper 3–32 cm of the stems, though occasionally as many as 16, with only the lower groups significantly separated from each other. Within each group there are two cymes, each with two to eight flowers, though more often four or less. Blooming can occur from May to August in its native habitat.[3]

Taxonomy

Penstemon payettensis was scientifically described and named by Aven Nelson and James Francis Macbride in 1916.[5] However, in the original publication the species name was spelled payetensis.[6] It was described from a type specimen collected from the Payette National Forest in Idaho in 1912.[2] It is classified in the Penstemon genus within the Plantaginaceae. The species has no subspecies or botanical synonyms.[5]

Names

Penstemon payettensis is known as Payette penstemon,[2] Payette beardtongue,[7] and Payette's beardtongue,[1] which, like the species name payettensis, derive from where the type specimen was collected in the Payette National Forest.[8]

Range and habitat

The Payette penstemon is native to Oregon, Idaho, and Montana in the northwestern United States.[5] There it grows on the eastern Columbia Plateau and in the northern Rocky Mountains.[3] In Oregon it is known from the northeastern corner of the state in Baker, Union, and Wallowa counties but is much more widespread in southern and central Idaho.[7] Only two populations have been documented in Montana's Bitterroot National Forest in the southwest of the state, Ravalli and Beaverhead counties.[9] It is found at elevations of 1,200 to 2,600 meters (3,900–8,500 ft).[3]

The species grows in dry and open areas on gravelly soils in coniferous forests and hilly sagebrush steppes.[3]

See also

List of Penstemon species

References

Citations

Sources

Books

  • Cronquist, Arthur; Holmgren, Arthur H.; Holmgren, Noel H.; Reveal, James L.; Holmgren, Patricia K. (1984). Intermountain Flora : Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A.. Vol. Four. Subclass Asteridae (except Asteraceae). New York: Published for the New York Botanical Garden by Hafner Pub. Co. ISBN 978-0-89327-248-7. OCLC 320442. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
  • Lindgren, Dale Tennis; Wilde, Ellen; American Penstemon Society (2003). Growing Penstemons : Species, Cultivars, and Hybrids (First ed.). Haverford, Pennsylvania: Infinity Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7414-1529-5. LCCN 2004272722. OCLC 54110971. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
  • Phillips, Wayne (1999). Central Rocky Mountain Wildflowers: A Field Guide to Common Wildflowers, Shrubs, and Trees. Helena, Montana: Falcon. ISBN 978-1-56044-729-0. OCLC 47010511. Retrieved 24 July 2026.

Journal articles

Web sources

Wikimedia Commons logo
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Penstemon payettensis.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.