''Primula pauciflora'', the pretty shooting star, few-flowered shooting star, dark throat shooting star or prairie shooting star, is a species of flowering plant in the primula family Primulaceae. It is a widespread and very variable species, native to western North America, from Subarctic America to Mexico, often in xeric (extremely dry) and desert habitats. It is found in the Great Basin Deserts and Mojave Desert. Its synonyms include ''Dodecatheon pauciflorum'' and ''Dodecatheon pulchellum''.

Description

''Primula pauciflora'' is a widespread and highly variable polyploid complex (2n = 44, 88 and 132). The species is generally hairless, with a flowering stem tall. The inflorescence is made up of between 2 and fifteen flowers. The flower generally has long

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s, magenta to lavender in color. ''Primula pauciflora'' has been divided into up to seven varieties each with their own often complex set of

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

. ''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''pauciflora'',

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

''Dodecatheon pulchellum'', is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial with single, leafless flower stems, growing from very short erect root stocks with no

bulblet In botany, a bulb is structurally a short Plant stem, stem with fleshy leaf, leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food st ...

s. It grows to a height of . Its leaves are

basal Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''. Science * Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure * Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...

, 2–15 cm long, blades oblong- lanceolate to oblanceolate, mostly entire to somewhat small-toothed, narrowed gradually to winged stalks nearly as long. Each plant has between 1 and 25 flowers clustered at the stem top. The

calyx Calyx or calyce (plural "calyces"), from the Latin ''calix'' which itself comes from the Ancient Greek ''κάλυξ'' (''kálux'') meaning "husk" or "pod", may refer to: Biology * Calyx (anatomy), collective name for several cup-like structures ...

is usually purple-flecked, and the five lobes are 3 to 5 millimeters long. The

corolla Corolla may refer to: *Corolla (botany), the petals of a flower, considered as a unit *Toyota Corolla, an automobile model name * Corolla (headgear), an ancient headdress in the form of a circlet or crown * ''Corolla'' (gastropod), a genus of moll ...

is 10 to 20 millimeters long, the 5 lobes swept backwards, purplish-lavender, seldom white, the short tube yellowish, usually with a purplish wavy line at the base. The filaments are joined into a yellowish tube 1.5–3 mm long, which is smooth or only slightly wrinkled. The 5

anther The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

s are joined to a projecting point, usually yellowish to reddish-purple, 4–7 mm long. The stigma is slightly larger than the style. This plant flowers between April and August. The fruits are capsules, many-seeded, ovoid-cylindric, hairless to glandular-hairy, membranous to firm-walled, 5–15 mm long, opening from the tip into sharp teeth.

Varieties

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepted seven varieties (distributions from the same source): *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''cusickii'' (Greene) A.R.Mast & Reveal – British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington State, Wyoming *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''distola'' (Reveal) A.R.Mast & Reveal – South Dakota, Wyoming *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''macrocarpa'' (A.Gray) A.R.Mast & Reveal – Alaska, British Columbia, California, Oregon, Washington State *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''monantha'' (Greene) A.R.Mast & Reveal – California, Oregon, Utah, Washington State *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''pauciflora'' – widespread from subarctic America to Mexico *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''shoshonensis'' (A.Nelson) A.R.Mast & Reveal – California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah *''Primula pauciflora'' var. ''zionensis'' (Eastw.) A.R.Mast & Reveal – Arizona, Colorado, Utah

Cultivation

Under the name ''Dodecatheon pulchellum'', the plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

. In cultivation it is

hardy Hardy may refer to: People * Hardy (surname) * Hardy (given name) * Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica * Mount Hardy, Enderby Land * Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island * Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands Australia * Hardy, Sout ...

down to , but prefers a sheltered location in partial or full shade with neutral or acid soil, such as a woodland setting.

Native Americans

The pretty shooting star was used medicinally by the Okanagan-

Colville Colville may refer to: Places Canada * Colville Lake (Northwest Territories), a lake in Northwest Territories * Colville Lake, Northwest Territories, a settlement corporation *Colville Range, a small mountain range in southwestern British Colu ...

and Blackfoot Indians. An infusion of the roots was used as a wash for sore eyes. A cooled infusion of leaves was used for eye drops. An infusion of leaves was gargled, especially by

children A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

, for cankers.

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile ''Dodecatheon pulchellum'' (Pretty shooting star)Calflora Database: ''Dodecatheon pulchellum''
* ttp://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection.php?ID=11610 University of Washington : The Burke Museum Herbarium – ''Dodecatheon pulchellum'' (Pretty shooting star) {{Taxonbar, from1=Q3018224, from2=Q15312552 pauciflora Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora of Western Canada Flora of Alaska Flora of Montana Flora of Nebraska Flora of New Mexico Flora of North Dakota Flora of the Northwest Territories Flora of South Dakota Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Great Basin Natural history of the Mojave Desert Plants used in Native American cuisine Flora without expected TNC conservation status