Flora of North America species comparison

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Atriplex covillei

Atriplex nummularia

Coville's orach

bluegreen saltbush, old man saltbush
Habit Herbs, spreading, 1–4(–5) dm and as broad. Shrubs, semidioecious, mainly (15–)20–30 dm, with striated twigs.
Stems

terete, sparsely scurfy when young.

Leaves

petiole to 1/2 as long as blade (becoming subsessile distally);

blade green or finally stramineous, (10–)20–50 × 6–30 mm, firm, base abruptly acute to narrowly cuneate, apex acute to attenuate, sparsely scurfy.

mostly alternate, short petiolate;

blade broadly ovate, rhombic to suborbiculate, (15–)30–65 mm, about as wide, thick, base cuneate, margin sinuate-dentate, apex obtuse to rounded.
Staminate flowers

in sessile glomerules in distal axils, often mixed with pistillate ones, staminate calyx deeply 5-cleft;

lobes obtuse, not appendaged.

crowded in glomerules on short or elongate, interrupted spikes in large paniculate clusters to 20 cm.
Pistillate flowers

with calyx of (1–)3(–5) hyaline sepals.

in dense, compound panicles, or axillary, or along staminate panicle branches.
Seeds

dark reddish brown, 1–1.5 mm.

brown, 2 mm wide.
Fruiting

bracteoles sessile or stipitate, 6–12 × 4–7 mm, margin mostly 3-lobed, with elongate terminal lobe triangular to lanceolate, 2 short rounded lobes at base or sides merely rounded at base, united to beyond middle.

bracteoles sessile, reticulately veined, rhombic to orbiculate, 5–12(–15) × 5–11 mm, papery all over or thick and corky, margin subentire to coarsely few-toothed.

Atriplex covillei

Atriplex nummularia
Phenology Flowering summer–fall. Flowering summer–fall.
Habitat Mixed saltbush-greasewood, rabbitbrush, warm desert shrub, and salt grass communities in saline substrates Sandy coastal bluffs, disturbed sites such as roadsides
Elevation 800-1700 m (2600-5600 ft) 0-2300 m (0-7500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; NV; OR
from FNA
AZ; CA; Mexico; Australia [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Endolepis covillei was treated within the synonymy of Atriplex phyllostegia (Torrey) S. Watson by H. M. Hall and F. E. Clements (1923).

H. C. Stutz et al. (1993) placed Atriplex covillei within Endolepis, based in large part on the presence of a perianth subtending the pistil within the fruiting bracteoles and on the lack of Kranz anatomy in the leaves. The pattern of venation is, nevertheless, very similar to that in species with Kranz anatomy. The presence of perianth scales in the pistillate flowers of A. covillei has been regarded as evidence of relationship with A. suckleyi. Despite placement of these taxa within Endolepis by Stutz et al. Atriplex covillei is possibly more closely allied to the morphologically similar and partially sympatric A. phyllostegia than it is to strongly dissimilar and the distantly disjunct A. suckleyi. Stutz and his associates placed great emphasis on the presence of reduced perianth segments subtending the pistil within the fruiting bracteoles of A. covillei. Calyces per se, otherwise known only in A. suckleyi and A. pleiantha, probably have arisen independently. Their presence does not necessarily indicate a close relationship. Stutz et al. pointed to other differences aside from the calyx of the pistillate flowers, and it is apparent that the two entities can stand as distinct species. To segregate A. covillei within a separate genus and to ally it with a species to which its relationships are obscure at best, stretches logic beyond reason.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Atriplex nummularia is a rather coarse, broad-leaved, vigorous shrub, which has spread from some early introduction from Australia, possibly for use in stabilizing land.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 4. FNA vol. 4, p. 343.
Parent taxa Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Obione > sect. Covilleiae Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Atriplex > sect. Dialysex
Sibling taxa
A. acanthocarpa, A. amnicola, A. argentea, A. californica, A. canescens, A. confertifolia, A. cordulata, A. coronata, A. corrugata, A. coulteri, A. dioica, A. elegans, A. fruticulosa, A. gardneri, A. garrettii, A. glabriuscula, A. gmelinii, A. graciliflora, A. heterosperma, A. holocarpa, A. hortensis, A. hymenelytra, A. joaquiniana, A. klebergorum, A. laciniata, A. lentiformis, A. leucophylla, A. lindleyi, A. linearis, A. littoralis, A. matamorensis, A. mucronata, A. nudicaulis, A. nummularia, A. oblongifolia, A. obovata, A. pacifica, A. parishii, A. parryi, A. patula, A. pentandra, A. phyllostegia, A. pleiantha, A. polycarpa, A. powellii, A. prostrata, A. pusilla, A. rosea, A. saccaria, A. semibaccata, A. serenana, A. spinifera, A. suberecta, A. suckleyi, A. tatarica, A. torreyi, A. truncata, A. tularensis, A. watsonii, A. wolfii, A. wrightii
A. acanthocarpa, A. amnicola, A. argentea, A. californica, A. canescens, A. confertifolia, A. cordulata, A. coronata, A. corrugata, A. coulteri, A. covillei, A. dioica, A. elegans, A. fruticulosa, A. gardneri, A. garrettii, A. glabriuscula, A. gmelinii, A. graciliflora, A. heterosperma, A. holocarpa, A. hortensis, A. hymenelytra, A. joaquiniana, A. klebergorum, A. laciniata, A. lentiformis, A. leucophylla, A. lindleyi, A. linearis, A. littoralis, A. matamorensis, A. mucronata, A. nudicaulis, A. oblongifolia, A. obovata, A. pacifica, A. parishii, A. parryi, A. patula, A. pentandra, A. phyllostegia, A. pleiantha, A. polycarpa, A. powellii, A. prostrata, A. pusilla, A. rosea, A. saccaria, A. semibaccata, A. serenana, A. spinifera, A. suberecta, A. suckleyi, A. tatarica, A. torreyi, A. truncata, A. tularensis, A. watsonii, A. wolfii, A. wrightii
Synonyms Endolepis covillei A. johnstonii
Name authority (Standley) J. F. Macbride: Contr. Gray Herb. 53: 11. (1918) Lindley: in T. L. Mitchell, J. Exped. Trop. Australia, 64. (1848)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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