Phlox pulvinata
| Phlox pulvinata | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Embryophytes |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Polemoniaceae |
| Genus: | Phlox |
| Species: | P. pulvinata |
| Binomial name | |
| Phlox pulvinata | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Phlox pulvinata is a species of phlox known by the common name cushion phlox. It is native to the western United States where it grows in mountain and plateau habitat, in rocky subalpine and alpine climates, including exposed tundra habitat. It is a perennial herb taking a flat, dense, cushionlike form on the ground. Its very short stems are lined with hair-fringed lance-shaped leaves each no more than one centimeter (2⁄5 in) long. The plant is among the first to flower in the spring in many areas. It blooms densely, forming carpets of flowers. Each white to pale pink flower has a tubular throat up to one centimeter (2⁄5 in) long and a flat five-lobed corolla.[3]
Taxonomy
Phlox pulvinata was initially described as a subspecies of Phlox caespitosa by Edgar T. Wherry in 1941. It was reclassified as a species in 1959 by the botanist Arthur Cronquist. It is part of the Phlox genus which is classified in the Polemoniaceae family.[2]
Names
In Botanical Latin the species name, pulvinata, means cushion shaped.[4] It is similarly known by the common name cushion phlox.[5]
References
Citations
- ↑ NatureServe 2026.
- 1 2 POWO 2026.
- ↑ "Pulvinate Phlox, Phlox pulvinata". calscape.org.
- ↑ Heil et al. 2013, p. 833.
- ↑ Cronquist et al. 1984, p. 104.
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 4 August 2026.
- Heil, Kenneth D.; O'Kane, Steve L. Jr.; Reeves, Linda Mary; Clifford, Arnold (2013). Flora of the Four Corners Region: Vascular Plants of the San Juan River Drainage, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah (First ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Missouri Botanical Garden. ISBN 978-1-930723-84-9. ISSN 0161-1542. LCCN 2012949654. OCLC 859541992. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
Web sources
- NatureServe (31 July 2026). "Phlox pulvinata". NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- POWO (2026). "Phlox pulvinata (Wherry) Cronquist". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
External links
