Ephedra viridis |
Ephedra coryi |
|
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green Ephedra, green Mormon tea, Mormon tea |
Cory's Ephedra, Cory's jointfir |
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Habit | Shrubs erect, 0.5–1 m. | Shrubs rhizomatous, forming clumps, erect, 0.25–1.5 m, 3–5 m diam. |
Bark | gray, cracked and irregularly fissured. |
red-brown, cracked and irregularly fissured. |
Branches | alternate or whorled, rigid, angle of divergence about 30°. |
alternate or whorled, becoming rigid, angle of divergence about 25°. |
Twigs | bright green to yellow-green, becoming yellow with age, not viscid, ridges between longitudinal grooves barely papillate, smooth; internodes 1–5 cm. |
bright green, becoming yellow-green with age, not viscid, ridges between longitudinal grooves papillate, slightly scabrous; internodes 2–5 cm. |
Leaves | opposite, 2–5 mm, connate to 1/2–3/4 their length, not photosynthetic; bases thickened, brown, persistent, becoming hard, enlarged, and black; apex setaceous. |
opposite, 2–5 mm, connate to 1/2–3/4 their length; bases thickened, brown, persistent, becoming hard, enlarged, and black; apex acute. |
Pollen cones | 2–several at node, obovoid, 5–7 mm, sessile; bracts opposite, 6–10 pairs, light yellow and slightly reddened, ovate, 2–4 × 2–3 mm, membranous, slightly connate at base; bracteoles slightly exceeding bracts; sporangiophores 2–4 mm, 1/4–1/2 exserted, with 5–8 sessile to nearly sessile microsporangia. |
2–several at node, obovoid, 4–6 mm, on very short, scaly peduncles (rarely sessile); bracts opposite, 5–9 pairs, light yellow, ovate, 2–4 × 2–3 mm, membranous, slightly connate at base; bracteoles slightly exceeding bracts; sporangiophores 2–4 mm, 1/4 exserted, with 5–7 sessile to short-stalked (less than 1 mm) microsporangia. |
Seed(s) | cones 2–several at node, obovoid, 6–10 mm, sessile or on short, scaly peduncles; bracts opposite, 4–8 pairs, ovate, 4–7 × 2–4 mm, membranous or papery, with yellow center and base, margins entire. |
cones 2–several at node, obovoid to nearly globose, 7–15 mm, on smooth peduncles, 5–25 mm, with 1 pair of basal and 1 pair of nearly terminal bracts, at least in early cones; bracts opposite, 3–4 pairs, ovate to circular, 5–8 × 5–12 mm, inner pairs becoming fleshy (at least centrally) and orange at maturity. |
Terminal | buds conic, 1–2 mm, apex obtuse. |
buds conic, 1–3 mm. |
2n | = 28. |
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Ephedra viridis |
Ephedra coryi |
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Phenology | Coning spring. | Coning March–April. |
Habitat | Dry rocky slopes and canyon walls | Sandy, semiarid areas |
Elevation | 800–2500 m [2600–8200 ft] | 500–2300 m [1600–7500 ft] |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CO; NM; NV; OR; UT; WY
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NM; TX |
Discussion | In New Mexico Ephedra coryi occurs only in an isolated population in the San Andreas Mountains and represents the shorter extreme (5–10 mm) in the range of peduncle length. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 2. | FNA vol. 2. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | E. nevadensis var. pluribracteata, E. nevadensis var. viridis | |
Name authority | Coville: Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 4: 220. (1893) | E. L. Reed: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 63: 351. (1936) |
Web links |