Burke: Castilleja miniata vs. Castilleja miniata var. miniata

	Castilleja miniata	Castilleja miniata var. miniata
	common paintbrush, scarlet paintbrush	scarlet paintbrush
Habit	Perennial herb to 80 cm tall; stems in small clusters, often branched above.
Leaves	Simple, narrow with pointed tip; inflorescence leaves and bracts bright red, sometimes with a few small lobes.
Flowers	Inconspicuous, greenish, tubular flowers, surrounded by a much showier bright red calyx and inflorescence bracts.
Fruits	2-celled capsules with many seeds.
Comments	Our most common Castilleja in the mountians.

	Castilleja miniata	Castilleja miniata var. miniata
Identification notes	A few traits to look for include the narrow unlobed leaves; bright red inflorescence; sharply pointed calyx lobes, and greenish flowers much longer than calyx. Castilleja is a difficult genus; consult technical keys.	Has thinner, narrower, and more pointed leaves than var. dixoni, and is found at middle to high elevations in the mountains.
Flowering time	May-September	May-September
Habitat	Mountain meadows and slopes; also on coastal bluffs; widespread and common.	Meadows, grasslands, forest openings, and slopes at moderate elevations in the mountains.
Distribution	Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east to the Rocky Mountains and Great Lakes region. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east to the Rocky Mountains and Great Lakes region. [BONAP county map]
Origin	Native	Native
Conservation status	Not of concern	Not of concern
Sibling taxa	C. ambigua, C. attenuata, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. hispida, C. levisecta, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. minor, C. parviflora, C. rupicola, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. victoriae	C. miniata var. dixonii
Subordinate taxa	C. miniata var. dixonii, C. miniata var. miniata
Web links	Local floras: BC, CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: BC, CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Castilleja miniata var. miniata

common paintbrush, scarlet paintbrush

scarlet paintbrush

Habit

Perennial herb to 80 cm tall; stems in small clusters, often branched above.

Leaves

Simple, narrow with pointed tip;

inflorescence leaves and bracts bright red, sometimes with a few small lobes.

Flowers

Inconspicuous, greenish, tubular flowers, surrounded by a much showier bright red calyx and inflorescence bracts.

Fruits

2-celled capsules with many seeds.

Comments

Our most common Castilleja in the mountians.

Castilleja miniata var. miniata

Identification notes

A few traits to look for include the narrow unlobed leaves; bright red inflorescence; sharply pointed calyx lobes, and greenish flowers much longer than calyx. Castilleja is a difficult genus; consult technical keys.

Has thinner, narrower, and more pointed leaves than var. dixoni, and is found at middle to high elevations in the mountains.

Flowering time

May-September

Habitat

Mountain meadows and slopes; also on coastal bluffs; widespread and common.

Meadows, grasslands, forest openings, and slopes at moderate elevations in the mountains.

Distribution