Flora of North America species comparison

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Ceanothus gloriosus

Ceanothus pinetorum

glory mat, Point Reyes ceanothus

Coville ceanothus, Coville's ceanothus, Kern ceanothus
Habit Shrubs, 0.1–3 m, matlike to moundlike. Shrubs, 0.5–1.5 m, sometimes moundlike.
Stems

prostrate, spreading, ascending, or erect, sometimes rooting at proximal nodes;

branchlets green to brown or reddish brown, flexible to rigid, strigillose or tomentulose.

erect, spreading, or weakly ascending, sometimes arcuate, rooting at proximal nodes;

branchlets reddish to grayish brown, sometimes glaucous, rigid, glabrous or sparsely puberulent.
Leaves

not fascicled, not crowded;

petiole 1–4 mm;

blade flat to ± cupped or folded lengthwise adaxially, widely elliptic, obovate, or suborbiculate, 10–40(–45) × 5–24 mm, base cuneate to ± rounded, margins not revolute, sometimes slightly thickened, dentate to denticulate most of length, teeth 9–35, apex rounded, truncate, or retuse, abaxial surface pale green, sparsely strigillose or glabrate, adaxial surface dark green, ± shiny, glabrous.

sometimes fascicled, not crowded;

petiole 1–3 mm;

blade flat to slightly cupped, slightly folded lengthwise adaxially, widely elliptic to suborbiculate, 10–20 × 8–19 mm, base rounded, margins thick to slightly revolute, dentate to denticulate most of length, teeth 9–15, apex rounded, abaxial surface pale green, glabrous except on veins, adaxial surface dark green, glabrous.
Inflorescences

axillary, 0.9–2.5 cm.

axillary, 1.2–2.1 cm.
Flowers

sepals, petals, and nectary deep blue to bluish purple.

sepals, petals, and nectary pale blue to blue.
Capsules

4–6 mm wide, lobed;

valves usually smooth, sometimes rugulose or crested distal to middle, horns subapical, minute, not rugose, intermediate ridges absent.

6–9 mm wide, weakly lobed;

valves smooth to rugulose, horns subapical, prominent, erect, rugose, intermediate ridges present.

Ceanothus gloriosus

Ceanothus pinetorum
Phenology Flowering May–Jun.
Habitat Rocky granitic or metamorphic slopes and ridges, open pine forests.
Elevation 1600–2600 m. (5200–8500 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

Ceanothus gloriosus is composed of three varieties occurring along the northern California coast from Humboldt County to Marin County. Variety gloriosus and var. porrectus generally differ primarily by leaf shape, length and width, and the number of marginal teeth. Variety exaltatus differs from the other two varieties primarily in stature. Complex hybrids with C. cuneatus var. ramulosus, C. divergens, and C. sonomensis were studied by J. T. Howell (1940).

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

Ceanothus pinetorum occurs disjunctly in the southern Trinity Mountains (Shasta and Trinity counties) and in the southern Sierra Nevada (Kern and Tulare counties).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Shrubs 0.8–3 m; stems erect to ascending.
var. exaltatus
1. Shrubs 0.1–0.5 m; stems prostrate to spreading.
→ 2
2. Leaf blades widely obovate to suborbiculate, 23–31(–45) × 17–24 mm, marginal teeth 13–31.
var. gloriosus
2. Leaf blades elliptic, obovate, or narrowly obovate, 10–21 × 5–15 mm, marginal teeth 9–19.
var. porrectus
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 102. FNA vol. 12, p. 106.
Parent taxa Rhamnaceae > Ceanothus > subg. Cerastes Rhamnaceae > Ceanothus > subg. Cerastes
Sibling taxa
C. americanus, C. arboreus, C. arcuatus, C. confusus, C. cordulatus, C. crassifolius, C. cuneatus, C. cyaneus, C. dentatus, C. divergens, C. diversifolius, C. fendleri, C. ferrisiae, C. foliosus, C. fresnensis, C. griseus, C. hearstiorum, C. herbaceus, C. impressus, C. incanus, C. integerrimus, C. jepsonii, C. lemmonii, C. leucodermis, C. maritimus, C. martini, C. masonii, C. megacarpus, C. microphyllus, C. oliganthus, C. ophiochilus, C. otayensis, C. palmeri, C. papillosus, C. parryi, C. parvifolius, C. pauciflorus, C. perplexans, C. pinetorum, C. prostratus, C. pumilus, C. purpureus, C. roderickii, C. sanguineus, C. sonomensis, C. spinosus, C. thyrsiflorus, C. tomentosus, C. velutinus, C. verrucosus
C. americanus, C. arboreus, C. arcuatus, C. confusus, C. cordulatus, C. crassifolius, C. cuneatus, C. cyaneus, C. dentatus, C. divergens, C. diversifolius, C. fendleri, C. ferrisiae, C. foliosus, C. fresnensis, C. gloriosus, C. griseus, C. hearstiorum, C. herbaceus, C. impressus, C. incanus, C. integerrimus, C. jepsonii, C. lemmonii, C. leucodermis, C. maritimus, C. martini, C. masonii, C. megacarpus, C. microphyllus, C. oliganthus, C. ophiochilus, C. otayensis, C. palmeri, C. papillosus, C. parryi, C. parvifolius, C. pauciflorus, C. perplexans, C. prostratus, C. pumilus, C. purpureus, C. roderickii, C. sanguineus, C. sonomensis, C. spinosus, C. thyrsiflorus, C. tomentosus, C. velutinus, C. verrucosus
Subordinate taxa
C. gloriosus var. exaltatus, C. gloriosus var. gloriosus, C. gloriosus var. porrectus
Name authority J. T. Howell: Leafl. W. Bot. 2: 43. (1937) Coville: Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 4: 80, plate 6. (1893)
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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