Flora of North America species comparison

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Balsamorhiza rosea

Balsamorhiza deltoidea
Balsamorhiza rosea

rosy balsamroot

deltoid balsam root, Puget balsamroot
Habit Plants 6–10(–30) cm. Plants 20–90 cm.
Basal leaves

blades gray-green, oblong to lance-ovate, 3–10(–20) × 2–5 cm (rarely pinnately lobed), bases weakly cordate or truncate, margins crenate to serrate, apices rounded to acute, faces finely strigose to moderately scabrous (usually gland-dotted as well).

blades green, deltate or rounded-deltate to triangular-deltate, 10–25+ × 7–15(–20) cm, bases cordate to sagittate, margins usually crenate to dentate (at least near bases), sometimes entire, apices acute, faces usually sparsely hirtellous to hispidulous, sometimes glabrous (usually gland-dotted, sometimes vernicose).
Involucres

hemispheric, 18–20 mm diam.

campanulate to hemispheric 15–30+ mm diam.
Ray laminae

(becoming brick-red, often drying to pink or rose, and chartaceous) (8–)15(–25) mm (hispidulous abaxially; cypselae strigose).

20–50 mm.
Outer phyllaries

deltate or ovate to lanceolate, 8–12 mm, not surpassing inner.

oblong to lanceolate or lance-linear, (12–)30–40(–60) mm, usually much surpassing inner, apices acute.
Heads

usually borne singly.

usually borne singly, sometimes 2+.
2n

= 38.

= 38.

Balsamorhiza rosea

Balsamorhiza deltoidea
Phenology Flowering Apr–May. Flowering (Mar–)Apr–Jun(–Jul).
Habitat Dry hills Open hillsides, openings in chaparral or forests
Elevation 300–400 m (1000–1300 ft) 60–1800(–2400) m (200–5900(–7900) ft)
Distribution
from FNA
OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

In a hybrid swarm involving Balsamorhiza rosea and B. careyana, B. rosea remains relatively uncontaminated; the dominance among the hybrids appears to lie with B. careyana. A record of a hybrid between B. rosea and B. careyana from the Spokane area is doubtful.

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

Balsamorhiza deltoidea varies in the crenation of the leaf margins. The variability may stem from an old hybridization with B. hookeri or other species of Balsamorhiza. Otherwise, B. deltoidea shows little significant variability except where it hybridizes with B. careyana in the narrows of the Columbia River Gorge.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 21, p. 96. FNA vol. 21, p. 95.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Ecliptinae > Balsamorhiza > subg. Balsamorhiza Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Ecliptinae > Balsamorhiza > subg. Artorhiza
Sibling taxa
B. careyana, B. deltoidea, B. hispidula, B. hookeri, B. incana, B. lanata, B. macrolepis, B. macrophylla, B. sagittata, B. sericea, B. serrata
B. careyana, B. hispidula, B. hookeri, B. incana, B. lanata, B. macrolepis, B. macrophylla, B. rosea, B. sagittata, B. sericea, B. serrata
Synonyms B. hookeri var. rosea B. glabrescens
Name authority A. Nelson & J. F. Macbride: Bot. Gaz. 56: 478. (1913) Nuttall: Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. 7: 351. (1840)
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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