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Lemmon's Indian paintbrush, Lemmon's paintbrush

Wallowa paintbrush, yellow paintbrush, yellow Wallowa Indian paintbrush, yellowish or common Wallowa paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.8–2.5 dm; from a woody caudex; with slender, branching roots. Herbs, perennial, (0.5–)1–2(–5) dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot.
Stems

few to many, decumbent-based to erect, unbranched except for short, leafy axillary shoots, hairs sparse, spreading, medium length to long, soft and dense, short to medium length, stipitate-glandular.

few to many, erect or ascending, often decumbent at base, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs spreading, long, soft, mixed with dense, shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

Leaves

green or gray-green to purple (sometimes different on stems of same plant), linear-lanceolate, distal sometimes broadly lanceolate, 0.5–4 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, involute, 0(–3)-lobed, apex acute to acuminate;

lobes ascending, linear to narrowly lanceolate, apex acute to acuminate, rarely obtuse.

green or purple-tinged, sometimes deep purple, broadly lanceolate, sometimes linear-lanceolate or narrowly oblong, 1.5–4.8 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, flat or involute, 0–3-lobed, apex acute;

lobes ascending or spreading, linear to narrowly linear or narrowly lanceolate, short, apex acuminate.

Inflorescences

2–12 × 1–3 cm;

bracts greenish to dull purplish or brownish throughout, or proximally greenish to dull purplish, distally pink to purple or magenta, rarely white, ovate, broadly lanceolate, or oblong, (0–)3–5-lobed;

lobes ascending to erect, lanceolate, medium length, arising above mid length, apex acute to rounded.

3–17 × 1–3 cm;

bracts greenish or pale yellow-green throughout, or proximally greenish or pale yellow-green, distally pale yellow to whitish, sometimes pink-purple, or pale, dull purplish, sometimes aging pink or yellow, often infused with light purple, rarely pink, ovate to broadly acute, (0–)3-lobed;

lobes ascending, linear-lanceolate, oblong, or triangular, short, arising below mid length, apex acute to obtuse.

Corollas

slightly curved, 16–21 mm;

tube 10–16 mm;

abaxial lip sometimes partly exserted, beak usually exserted;

beak adaxially green, 6–7 mm, margins red;

abaxial lip greenish, inflated, pouches 3, shallow, central pouch shallowly grooved, visible through front cleft, 3–4 mm, 60% as long as beak;

teeth erect, violet-purple or pink, 1–2.5 mm.

straight, (16–)20–25 mm;

tube 15–18 mm;

beak slightly exserted, adaxially green to yellow, 5.5–8.5 mm;

abaxial lip white, green and white, pink, or purple, ± prominent, appressed (proximally scarcely or not pouched), 3–5 mm, 67% as long as beak;

teeth erect, white or pink with some purple or red, 1.5–2.5 mm.

Calyces

proximally brown or dull magenta, sometimes green, distally colored as bracts, 12.5–18 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 5.5–10.5 mm, 40–65% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 0.5–2 mm, 5–15% of calyx length;

lobes oblong, apex rounded.

proximally green, pale with green veins, purple-tinged green, or purple, distally pale yellow, white, or purplish, 12–20 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 8–12 mm, 50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 0.5–3 mm, 5–15% of calyx length;

lobes short-triangular, apex obtuse, rounded, or truncate.

Stigmas

greenish to deep bluish purple.

2n

= 24.

Castilleja lemmonii

Castilleja chrysantha

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug. Flowering May–Oct.
Habitat Moist to wet meadows and flats, shorelines, open conifer forests, subalpine and alpine, often over granite. Flat, mesic meadows, dry talus and ridges, montane to alpine.
Elevation 1500–3700 m. [4900–12100 ft.] 1100–2800 m. [3600–9200 ft.]
Distribution
from FNA
CA; NV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

As delimited here, Castilleja lemmonii is endemic to the highlands of the Sierra Nevada in California and in adjacent Washoe County, Nevada. It differs from C. lassenensis, a plant of volcanic highlands around Mt. Lassen, which has consistently white corollas. Corollas are usually pink to purplish in C. lemmonii. Castilleja lemmonii also tends to have somewhat shorter lateral calyx clefts, though the two species overlap slightly in this character.

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

Castilleja chrysantha is endemic to the mountains of northeastern Oregon, and its patterns of variation need further study. Most plants in the Blue Mountains are taller, more erect, and tolerate lower elevation habitats than populations around the type locality in the Wallowa Mountains. Plants with purplish inflorescences and longer hairs were described as C. ownbeyana and tend to favor drier talus and ridges than plants like the type, found in flat, mesic, montane to subalpine meadows. Hybrids between C. chrysantha and C. fraterna occur in Wallowa County. In the Wallowa Mountains, a recurrent and variable hybrid form between C. chrysantha and C. rhexiifolia was described as C. wallowensis Pennell.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 620. Treatment authors: J. Mark Egger, Peter F. Zika, Barbara L. Wilson, Richard E. Brainerd, Nick Otting. FNA vol. 17, p. 596. Treatment authors: J. Mark Egger, Peter F. Zika, Barbara L. Wilson, Richard E. Brainerd, Nick Otting.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Castilleja Orobanchaceae > Castilleja
Sibling taxa
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. chrysantha, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nana, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. oresbia, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. pulchella, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. lemmonii, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nana, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. oresbia, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. pulchella, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
Synonyms C. culbertsonii C. ownbeyana
Name authority A. Gray: in A. Gray et al., Syn. Fl. N. Amer. 2(1): 297. (1878) — (as Castilleia lemmoni) Greenman: Bot. Gaz. 48: 146. (1909)
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