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Monterey spineflower

Sonoma spineflower

Habit Plants prostrate to ascending or erect, 0.5–2(–2.5) × 0.5–10 dm, grayish-villous. Plants erect to spreading, 1–3 × 1–6 dm, villous.
Leaves

basal;

petiole (0.5–)1–3(–4) cm;

blade oblanceolate, (0.5–)1–5(–7) × (0.3–)0.4–0.7(–1) cm, villous.

basal or nearly so;

petiole 1–3 cm;

blade broadly oblanceolate, 1–2.5(–5) × 0.4–0.8(–1.2) cm, usually villous.

Inflorescences

rather dense with secondary branches suppressed, grayish;

bracts 2, similar to leaf blades at proximal nodes only reduced, short-petiolate, becoming linear and aciculate at distal nodes, acerose, 0.5–7 cm × 2–7 mm, awns 0.5–1.2 mm.

with secondary branches suppressed, grayish;

bracts 2, similar to proximal leaf blades only reduced, short-petiolate, becoming linear and aciculate at distal nodes, acerose, 1–3 cm × 6–10 mm, awns absent.

Involucres

1, grayish, cylindric, often ventricose basally, 2–2.5(–3) mm, with distinct, white to pink or purple, scarious margins extending nearly full length of awn, corrugate, villous abaxially;

teeth spreading, equal, 0.5–1.5 mm;

awns uncinate with longer ones 2–3 mm and alternating with shorter (1–1.5 mm) ones.

1, grayish, cylindric, not ventricose,3–4(–4.5) mm, with white, scarious margins between teeth, finely corrugate, thinly pubescent;

teeth erect, equal, 0.3–0.7(–1) mm;

awns straight, with longer ones 0.7–1.3 mm and anterior one mostly 1.3 mm, these alternating with shorter, 0.5–1(–1.2) mm ones.

Flowers

exserted;

perianth bicolored with floral tube white and tepals white to rose, cylindric, 2–3.5 mm, pubescent abaxially;

tepals connate less than 1/4 their length, monomorphic, obovate to oblong, acute to truncate and erose apically;

stamens 9, slightly exserted;

filaments distinct, 2–3 mm, glabrous;

anthers cream to rose, ovate, 0.3–0.4 mm.

exserted;

perianth bicolored with floral tube white and tepals white to lavender or rose, cylindric, (4–)5–6 mm, pubescent on proximal 1/2;

tepals connate 1/4 their length, dimorphic, oblong, truncate and erose to denticulate, sometimes individual lobes entire, 2-lobed or even cuspidate apically, those of outer lobes longer and wider than inner ones;

stamens 9, included;

filaments distinct, 2–4.5 mm, glabrous;

anthers pink to red or maroon, oblong, 0.6–0.8(–1) mm.

Achenes

dark brown, globose-lenticular, 2–2.5 mm.

light brown, lenticular-globose, 3–4.5 mm.

Chorizanthe pungens

Chorizanthe valida

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Sandy places, coastal grassland communities
Elevation 10-100 m (0-300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

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

Of conservation concern.

Chorizanthe valida may be distinguished by the highly colored involucre. The teeth and bases of awns are bright red. The awns then quickly transform to a bright ivory and this color dominates nearly the length of each awn. In the more inland populations (now extirpated), the awns observed in the old collections appear to be a straw color. It is not known if this is an artifact of age or potentially significant. Sonoma spineflower is now known only from grassy fields south of Abbott’s Lagoon in the Point Reyes area of Marin County (L. Davis and R. J. Sherman 1990, 1992). The last collection from Sonoma County was made at Sebastopol in 1907. The type, collected in 1841, apparently was gathered near Fort Ross, also in Sonoma County. This species is federally listed as endangered.

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

Key
1. Margins of involucres white (rarely pinkish), scarious; plants prostrate to slightly ascending; coastal areas and adjacent inland valleys
var. pungens
1. Margins of involucres dark pinkish to purple, scarious; plants slightly ascending to erect; coastal mountains
var. hartwegiana
Source FNA vol. 5, p. 453. FNA vol. 5, p. 456.
Parent taxa Polygonaceae > subfam. Eriogonoideae > Chorizanthe > subg. Amphietes > sect. Ptelosepala Polygonaceae > subfam. Eriogonoideae > Chorizanthe > subg. Amphietes > sect. Ptelosepala
Sibling taxa
C. angustifolia, C. biloba, C. blakleyi, C. brevicornu, C. breweri, C. clevelandii, C. corrugata, C. cuspidata, C. diffusa, C. douglasii, C. fimbriata, C. howellii, C. leptotheca, C. membranacea, C. obovata, C. orcuttiana, C. palmeri, C. parryi, C. polygonoides, C. procumbens, C. rectispina, C. rigida, C. robusta, C. spinosa, C. staticoides, C. stellulata, C. uniaristata, C. valida, C. ventricosa, C. watsonii, C. wheeleri, C. xanti
C. angustifolia, C. biloba, C. blakleyi, C. brevicornu, C. breweri, C. clevelandii, C. corrugata, C. cuspidata, C. diffusa, C. douglasii, C. fimbriata, C. howellii, C. leptotheca, C. membranacea, C. obovata, C. orcuttiana, C. palmeri, C. parryi, C. polygonoides, C. procumbens, C. pungens, C. rectispina, C. rigida, C. robusta, C. spinosa, C. staticoides, C. stellulata, C. uniaristata, C. ventricosa, C. watsonii, C. wheeleri, C. xanti
Subordinate taxa
C. pungens var. hartwegiana, C. pungens var. pungens
Name authority Bentham: Trans. Linn. Soc. London 17: 419, plate 19, fig. 2. (1836) S. Watson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 12: 271. (1877)
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