''Castilleja elmeri'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family

Orobanchaceae Orobanchaceae, the broomrapes, is a family of mostly parasitic plants of the order Lamiales, with about 90 genera and more than 2000 species. Many of these genera (e.g., ''Pedicularis'', ''Rhinanthus'', ''Striga'') were formerly included in the ...

with the common name Elmer's paintbrush. As with most ''

Castilleja ''Castilleja'', commonly known as paintbrush, Indian paintbrush, or prairie-fire, is a genus of about 200 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants native to the west of the Americas from Alaska south to the Andes, northern Asia, and one ...

'' species, this is a facultative root

hemiparasite A parasitic plant is a plant that derives some or all of its nutritional requirements from another living plant. They make up about 1% of angiosperms and are found in almost every biome. All parasitic plants develop a specialized organ called the ...

and will usually be seen growing close to a host plant. Hitchcock, C.L. and Cronquist, A. 2018. Flora of the Pacific Northwest, 2nd Edition, p. 503. University of Washington Press, Seattle.

Description

Unbranched stems grow from a small woody base and are up to 30 cm tall. Leaves are lanceolate and usually entire, and the flowers form a relatively (for a ''Castilleja'') compact head that is usually red or pale yellow, sometimes nearly white or intermediate colors. Leaves, stems, and bracts are covered with fine short hairs. Burke Herbarium Image Collection, http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Castilleja%20elmeri

Range and habitat

''Castilleja elmeri'' grows in mountains from southern British Columbia to the Wenatchee Mountains and Mount Rainier in Washington State. In the Wenatchee Mountains it is notable for being common on

serpentine soil Serpentine soil is an uncommon soil type produced by weathered ultramafic rock such as peridotite and its metamorphic derivatives such as serpentinite. More precisely, serpentine soil contains minerals of the serpentine subgroup, especially anti ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15349649 elmeri Flora of British Columbia Flora of Washington (state) Taxa named by Merritt Lyndon Fernald