Flora of North America species comparison

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Atriplex leucophylla

Atriplex corrugata

beach saltbush, sea scale, whiteleaf orach

mat-atriplex, mat-saltbush, matscale
Habit Herbs, prostrate (decumbent or procumbent), many branched, 1.5–6 dm, somewhat woody below, coarse, white scurfy. Shrubs dioecious (rarely monoecious), low spreading (often appearing as if prostrate), mainly 0.3–1.5 × 3–15 dm.
Leaves

many, sometimes crowded;

blade orbiculate to ovate or ovate-lanceolate to elliptic or oblong, 8–40 × 4–18 mm, base obtuse or rounded, white scurfy.

persistent, sessile, opposite proximally, alternate distally;

blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, or oblong, 3–18 × 2–6 mm, margin entire, apex obtuse.
Staminate flowers

in dense terminal spikes.

yellow to brownish, in clusters 3–6 mm wide, borne in spikes 1–8 cm.
Pistillate flowers

in few-flowered, axillary clusters.

in leafy bracteate spikes 5–15 cm.
Seeds

dark red-brown, 2.5–3 mm.

brown, 1.5 mm wide.
Fruiting

bracteoles not compressed, 5–7 mm, faces usually with wartlike projections, scurfy.

bracteoles sessile or subsessile, panduriform, 3–5 × 4–6 mm, united to beyond middle, margin entire or undulate, apex rounded to acute, densely tuberculate (or smooth).
2n

= 36.

Atriplex leucophylla

Atriplex corrugata
Phenology Flowering spring–fall. Flowering spring–fall.
Habitat Sea beaches, along coasts, at higher elevation inland Saline, usually fine-textured substrates derived from Mancos Shale, Tropic Shale, Morrison, Duchesne River, and other similar formations in mat-atriplex and Castle Valley saltbush communities
Elevation 0-30 m (0-100 ft) 1200-2200 m (3900-7200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; NM; UT
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[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Atriplex leucophylla occurs with Potentilla, Camissonia, Ambrosia, Cakile, and Calystegia.

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

Mat-saltbush is known to form intermediates with both Atriplex confertifolia and A. gardneri var. cuneata. This saltbush is a valuable browse plant on the sparsely vegetated clays and silts of eastern Utah, especially on the Mancos Shale exposures, where it is often the only woody vegetation present.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 4, p. 366. FNA vol. 4.
Parent taxa Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Obione > sect. Obione > subsect. Leucophyllae Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Pterochiton
Sibling taxa
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. 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. 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. 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
Synonyms Obione leucophylla A. nuttallii var. corrugata
Name authority (Moquin-Tandon) D. Dietrich: Syn. Pl. 5: 536. (1852) S. Watson: Bot. Gaz. 16: 345. (1891)
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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