Castilleja rhexiifolia
Castilleja mendocinensis
alpine paintbrush, rhexia-leaf paintbrush, Rocky Mountain paintbrush, rosy paintbrush, split-leaf Indian paintbrush
Mendocino coast Indian paintbrush, Mendocino coast paintbrush
few to several, erect or ascending, unbranched, sometimes branched, proximally glabrous to glabrate, distally sparsely hairy, hairs spreading, ± long, soft, eglandular, sometimes stipitate-glandular.
few to many, decumbent to ascending, much-branched, with leafy axillary shoots, villous, hairs spreading, long, stiff to soft, eglandular, mixed with short-glandular ones.
green or purple-tinged, linear, narrowly to broadly lanceolate, oblong, or ovate, 3–6(–7) cm, not fleshy, margins plane, flat to slightly involute, prominently veined, 0(–3)-lobed, apex acute to rarely obtuse;
lobes ascending or spreading, linear to filiform, much smaller than mid blade, short, apex acute.
gray-green becoming ± purple, or green, ± cup-shaped, oblong to narrowly elliptic or suborbicular, 0.5–2(–5) cm, ± fleshy, cupulate throughout, sometimes obscurely so on distal portion of stem, margins plane, flat to involute, 0–3-lobed, apex rounded;
lobes ascending, oblong to rounded, apex truncate or rounded, sometimes ± acute.
2.5–15 × 1.5–4.5 cm;
bracts pink-purple, red-purple, purple, or crimson throughout, rarely reddish, yellowish, or white throughout, or proximally greenish, dull brownish purple, or deep purple, distally colored as above, broadly lanceolate to ovate or obovate, (0–)3–5(–7)-lobed;
lobes ascending to erect, linear or lanceolate-acuminate, short, arising near or above mid length, central lobe apex obtuse to broadly rounded, lateral ones acute to sometimes rounded.
5–23 × 1.5–3.5 cm;
bracts proximally greenish, distally bright red or red-orange, sometimes orange, oblong, ovate, or widely cuneate to widely obovate to suborbiculate, sometimes cup-shaped, 0–3-lobed, sometimes with 3 additional shallow teeth at tip of central lobe;
lobes erect, oblong to broadly triangular, short, arising above mid length, apex truncate, rounded, or obtuse, lateral ones sometimes acute.
straight, 15–30(–36) mm;
tube (11–)12–22(–24) mm;
beak exserted, adaxially green, yellow, or tinged with red, 7–12 mm;
abaxial lip deep green, reduced, 1.5–3.5 mm, to 33% as long as beak;
teeth incurved, green or white, 0.5–2 mm.
straight or slightly curved, 28–45 mm;
tube 18–20 mm;
beak exserted, adaxially green or yellow-green, 15–25 mm;
abaxial lip deep green, reduced, visible in front cleft, 1–1.5 mm, 10% as long as beak;
teeth incurved, green, 0.5–1 mm.
proximally green, purplish, or whitish, distally colored as bracts, 15–25 mm;
abaxial and adaxial clefts 8–12(–15) mm, 40–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 2–5(–8) mm, 15–25(–30)% of calyx length;
lobes oblong to triangular or ovate, apex obtuse to rounded, sometimes acute.
colored as bracts, often with a yellow central band, 20–31 mm;
abaxial and adaxial clefts 8–12 mm, ca. 50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 2–6 mm, 10–15% of calyx length;
lobes oblong to broadly or narrowly triangular, apex obtuse or rounded, sometimes acute.
= 24, 48, 96.
= 72.
Castilleja rhexiifolia
Castilleja mendocinensis
Castilleja rhexiifolia is a characteristic and common paintbrush in the Rocky Mountains region, from central Alberta to northern New Mexico. Disjunct populations also occur in northeastern Oregon, in the Blue, Ochoco, and Wallowa mountains, as well as near the summit of Abercrombie Mountain in the Selkirk Mountains of northeastern Washington. The inflorescence colors are variable. Typical plants are red-purple. However, many other shades of pink-white, pink-purple, and crimson are common as well. Many populations contain a wide range of color variants. Intergradation is occasionally seen with C. miniata, C. occidentalis, and C. septentrionalis. However, for the most part, these four species remain distinct, and their ranges are not entirely overlapping. In the Wallowa Mountains, a recurrent and variable hybrid form between C. chrysantha and C. rhexiifolia was described as C. wallowensis Pennell. In the north Cascade Range of Washington, plants of C. elmeri with crimson inflorescences are sometimes identified as C. rhexiifolia. In Glacier National Park, Montana, in the vicinity of Logan Pass, C. rhexiifolia frequently hybridizes with C. occidentalis, creating a number of hybrid morphologies. Both of the parents are common in the area. Similar hybrids are also found in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Castilleja mendocinensis is a coastal plant from Mendocino County, California, northward to Curry County, Oregon. Its close relative, C. latifolia, occurs in similar habitats south of San Francisco Bay. There is one known population in Oregon, and a number of California localities are threatened by coastal development.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
BC
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
SW CO Wildflowers
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
CA
