''Penstemon floridus '' is a species of flowering plant in the
plantain family known by the common names Panamint beardtongue and rose penstemon.
It is native to the lower mountain and plateau areas of the
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...
, within eastern
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
and southwestern
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
. It grows in canyons,
arroyos
Arroyo often refers to:
* Arroyo (creek), an intermittently dry creek
Arroyo may also refer to:
People
* Arroyo (surname)
Places United States
;California
* Arroyo Burro Beach, a public beach park in Santa Barbara County, California
* Arroyo ...
, and sagebrush scrub.
Description
''Penstemon floridus'' is a
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
herb
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
producing erect stems sometimes exceeding tall. The thick leaves are lance-shaped to oval, usually toothed and somewhat wavy, and arranged in pairs with bases clasping the
stem
Stem or STEM may refer to:
Plant structures
* Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang
* Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure
* Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...
.
The glandular
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...
produces showy flowers up to 3 centimeters long and tubular in shape with a wide throat becoming narrowed at the lipped mouth. The flowers are bright pink with a darker lining inside.
Varieties
There are two varieties of this species.
* ''Penstemon floridus'' var. ''austinii'' — Austin's beardtongue, named for Stafford Wallace Austin, collector of plants and husband of writer
Mary Hunter Austin
Mary Hunter Austin (September 9, 1868 – August 13, 1934) was an American writer. One of the early nature writers of the American Southwest, her classic '' The Land of Little Rain'' (1903) describes the fauna, flora, and people – as well as e ...
.
* ''Penstemon floridus'' var. ''floridus'' — Panamint beardtongue.
CalFlora: ''Penstemon floridus'' var. ''floridus''
/ref>
See also
*
References
External links
Jepson Manual eFlora (TJM2) treatment for ''Penstemon floridus''
CalPhotos.
WHO'S IN A NAME? ''People Commemorated in Eastern Sierra Plant Names''
floridus
Flora of the California desert regions
Flora of Nevada
Natural history of the Mojave Desert
Death Valley National Park
Panamint Range
Endemic flora of the United States
Taxa named by Townshend Stith Brandegee
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Plantaginaceae-stub