''Penstemon barbatus'', known by the common names golden-beard penstemon, and beardlip penstemon, is a

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 ...

native to the western

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. In

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

-speaking New Mexico and southern Colorado, it is called ''varita de San Jose'' "St. Joseph's staff".Dodson & Dunmire, 2007, ''Mountain Wildflowers of the Southern Rockies,'' UNM Press, The plant has spikes of clustered, tubular, scarlet blossoms with yellow hairs on their lower lip; the

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are very attractive to hummingbirds. It is commonly grown in

Xeriscape Xeriscaping is the process of landscaping, or gardening, that reduces or eliminates the need for irrigation. It is promoted in regions that do not have accessible, plentiful, or reliable supplies of fresh water and has gained acceptance in other ...

and conventional gardens, and several

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s of different colors have been developed. The late-summer flowering of ''Penstemon barbatus'' coincides with the southern migration of the Rufous hummingbird, and the hummingbirds use the Scarlet buglers as "filling stations" for their long trip south.

Uses

The Zuni people rub the chewed root of the ''torreyi'' subspecies over the rabbit stick to insure success in the hunt.Stevenson, Matilda Coxe, 1915, Ethnobotany of the Zuni Indians. SI-BAE Annual Report #30 (p. 95)

References

External links

''Penstemon barbatus''
at Northern Arizona University barbatus Flora of the United States Taxa named by Antonio José Cavanilles {{Plantaginaceae-stub