UW Burke Herbarium species comparison

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Balsamorhiza hookeri

Balsamorhiza sagittata
Balsamorhiza hookeri

hairy balsamroot, hare's head balsamroot, Hooker's balsamroot

arrowleaf balsamroot
Habit Perennial from a carrot-like taproot, the lax, nearly naked stems 0.6-4 dm. tall. Large perennial herb from a taproot.
Leaves

Basal leaves 1-4 dm. long, pinnatifid, the divisions entire to deeply toothed;

stem leaves often with one or more inconspicuous, linear or pinnatifid bracts near the base.

All basal, large with broad or cordate bases, densely grayish hairy.
Flowers

Heads solitary;

involucre bracts linear to ovate, long-hairy at least marginally;

rays 10-16, 1.5-3.5 cm. long.

Heads solitary; top of peduncle and lower part of involucre strongly white-woolly;

rays 8-25, 2.5-4 cm. long.
Fruits

Achenes glabrous.

Achene glabrous.

Balsamorhiza hookeri

Balsamorhiza sagittata
Identification notes Our other species with pinnatifid leaves, Balsamorhiza incana, is silky-woolly throughout, while B. hookeri is sparcely hairy. Look for the typically densely hairy, silvery-gray foliage and involucre bracts; leaves are all basal.
Flowering time April-June April-July
Habitat Dry, open areas at low to moderate elevations, usually in lithosol (rocky, cobbly soil). Shrub-steppe, grasslands, and other open areas from low to middle elevations.
Distribution
Occurring east of the Cascades crest in central Washington; Washington to California, east to western Montana, southern Idaho, and Nevada.
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Occurring chiefly east of the Cascades crest in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to the Rocky Mountains and northern Great Plains.
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Origin Native Native
Conservation status Not of concern Not of concern
Sibling taxa
B. ×bonseri, B. careyana, B. careyana × B. hookeri, B. deltoidea, B. hookeri × B. sagittata, B. incana, B. rosea, B. sagittata, B. serrata, B. ×terebinthacea, B. ×tomentosa
B. ×bonseri, B. careyana, B. careyana × B. hookeri, B. deltoidea, B. hookeri, B. hookeri × B. sagittata, B. incana, B. rosea, B. serrata, B. ×terebinthacea, B. ×tomentosa
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the University of Washington's Burke Herbarium.



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