''Lewisia stebbinsii'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the family

Montiaceae Montiaceae are a family of flowering plants, comprising about 14 genera with about 230 known species, ranging from small herbaceous plants to shrubs. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution. The family Montiaceae was newly adopted in the APG ...

known by the common name Stebbins' lewisia. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, where it is known from less than fifteen sites in the

Inner North Coast Ranges The Inner North Coast Ranges occur along the east slope of the outer Northern California Coast Ranges. The term ''inner'' is a reference to the greater distances of the mountain ranges from the Pacific Ocean, compared to the ''outer'' ranges that ...

of Mendocino and Trinity Counties, mainly in

Mendocino National Forest The Mendocino National Forest is located in the Coastal Mountain Range in northwestern California and comprises 913,306 acres (3,696 km2). It is the only national forest in the state of California without a major paved road entering it ...

Description

This is a perennial herb growing from a slender

taproot A taproot is a large, central, and dominant root from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the carrot, the taproo ...

and caudex unit. It produces a basal rosette of several fleshy, narrow leaves up to about 9 centimeters long. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is made up of several prostrate stems extending from the rosette, each bearing 3 or more flowers. The flower has 7 to 10 pink to red petals with blunt or jagged tips 1 to 1.5 centimeters long.

External links

Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery
stebbinsii Endemic flora of California Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Mendocino National Forest Natural history of Mendocino County, California Natural history of Trinity County, California Plants described in 1968 Critically endangered flora of California {{Caryophyllales-stub