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tricolor monkeyflower

brownies, Douglas' monkeyflower, mouse-ear monkeyflower, purple mouse-ears

Habit Herbs, annual, acaulescent or caulescent. Herbs, annual.
Stems

erect or ascending, 10–140(–170) mm, densely glandular-puberulent.

erect, 3–40(–80) mm, glandular-puberulent and/or glandular-pubescent.

Leaves

basal densely clustered;

petiole absent;

blade narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate, (5–)8–45(–60) × (1–)3–12(–20) mm, margins entire, sometimes toothed, plane, not ciliate, apex obtuse, surfaces glandular-puberulent.

usually basal, reduced distally;

petiole absent, larger with petiole-like extension;

blade obovate to elliptic, 5–28(–35) × (2–)3–10(–12) mm, margins entire or crenate, plane, not ciliate, apex obtuse, surfaces: proximals glabrate, distals glandular-pilose adaxially.

Pedicels

1–3(–5) mm in fruit.

(1–)2–4 mm in fruit, usually twisting to invert calyx.

Flowers

1 per node, chasmogamous.

2 per node, or 1 or 2 per node on 1 plant, chasmogamous or cleistogamous.

Styles

usually glandular-puberulent.

pubescent distally.

Corollas

tricolored, limb and throat magenta to purple, each lobe with a discrete, dark maroon-purple blotch at base, all 3 blotches of abaxial lip round and not usually extending into throat, palate ridges yellow, flanked with white, sometimes purple-spotted, tube-throat (13–)15–50 mm, limb 7–21 mm diam., bilabiate, lobes equal.

throat magenta to dark purple, inside with longitudinal gold markings basally, adaxial lip magenta, palate ridges golden yellow, tube-throat (15–)20–41(–45) mm, limb 10–14 mm diam., abaxial lip essentially absent.

Calyces

slightly asymmetrically attached to pedicel, not inflated in fruit, (6–)11–23 mm, densely glandular-puberulent, lobes subequal, apex obtuse, ribs often purplish proximally, intercostal areas whitish.

distinctly asymmetrically attached to pedicel, not inflated in fruit, (6–)8–14(–15) mm, sparsely glandular-pilose, lobes subequal, apex appearing acute due to their continuity with ribs, ribs green to purplish, intercostal areas whitish.

Capsules

(2–)3–8(–10) mm, indehiscent.

(2.5–)3–6.5 mm.

Anthers

included, with apical tufts of short, eglandular hairs.

(distal pair) nearly exserted, glabrous or glabrate.

Stigmas

nearly exserted, lobes subequal.

exserted, lobes unequal, abaxial 10–20 times adaxial.

2n

= 18.

= 18.

Diplacus tricolor

Diplacus douglasii

Phenology Flowering Mar–Jul(–Aug). Flowering Feb–Apr(–May).
Habitat Vernally flooded depressions in grasslands, low spots and ditches in and around agricultural fields. Gentle to moderately steep slopes, upper banks of small creeks and ditches.
Elevation 50–1500 m. (200–4900 ft.) 50–1200 m. (200–3900 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

Diplacus tricolor occurs in northwestern and south-central Oregon and from there across a disjunction to central California as far as Kern County.

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

Diplacus douglasii occurs in southwestern Oregon and the northern two-thirds of California.

Diplacus douglasii is distinct in the complete or nearly complete lack of abaxial corolla lobes. Diplacus brandegeei, D. congdonii, D. kelloggii, and D. traskiae, the other species of sect. Cleisanthus, also show a distinct tendency toward reduction of the abaxial corolla lobes, and all species of the group except D. brandegeei produce markedly elongate corolla tubes.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 447. FNA vol. 17, p. 445.
Parent taxa Phrymaceae > Diplacus Phrymaceae > Diplacus
Sibling taxa
D. angustatus, D. aridus, D. aurantiacus, D. bicolor, D. bigelovii, D. bolanderi, D. brandegeei, D. brevipes, D. calycinus, D. cascadensis, D. clevelandii, D. clivicola, D. compactus, D. congdonii, D. constrictus, D. cusickii, D. cusickioides, D. deschutesensis, D. douglasii, D. fremontii, D. grandiflorus, D. graniticola, D. jepsonii, D. johnstonii, D. kelloggii, D. layneae, D. leptaleus, D. linearis, D. longiflorus, D. mephiticus, D. mohavensis, D. nanus, D. ovatus, D. parryi, D. parviflorus, D. pictus, D. pulchellus, D. puniceus, D. pygmaeus, D. rattanii, D. rupicola, D. rutilus, D. thompsonii, D. torreyi, D. traskiae, D. vandenbergensis, D. viscidus
D. angustatus, D. aridus, D. aurantiacus, D. bicolor, D. bigelovii, D. bolanderi, D. brandegeei, D. brevipes, D. calycinus, D. cascadensis, D. clevelandii, D. clivicola, D. compactus, D. congdonii, D. constrictus, D. cusickii, D. cusickioides, D. deschutesensis, D. fremontii, D. grandiflorus, D. graniticola, D. jepsonii, D. johnstonii, D. kelloggii, D. layneae, D. leptaleus, D. linearis, D. longiflorus, D. mephiticus, D. mohavensis, D. nanus, D. ovatus, D. parryi, D. parviflorus, D. pictus, D. pulchellus, D. puniceus, D. pygmaeus, D. rattanii, D. rupicola, D. rutilus, D. thompsonii, D. torreyi, D. traskiae, D. tricolor, D. vandenbergensis, D. viscidus
Synonyms Mimulus tricolor Eunanus douglasii, Mimulus cleistogamus, M. douglasii
Name authority (Hartweg ex Lindley) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 30. (2012) (Bentham) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 32. (2012)
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