FNA: Eriogonum leptophyllum vs. Eriogonum lonchophyllum

	Eriogonum leptophyllum	Eriogonum lonchophyllum
	slender-leaf wild buckwheat, slenderleaf buckwheat	spearleaf buckwheat, spearleaf wild buckwheat, spreading wild buckwheat
Habit	Shrubs or subshrubs, rounded to spreading, not scapose, (0.5–)2–8(–13) × (1–)3–15(–18) dm, thinly pubescent or glabrous and green, yellowish green or infrequently grayish, occasionally papillate.	Shrubs, subshrubs, or herbs, spreading to erect, not scapose, (1–)1.5–5 × 2–5(–8) dm, glabrous or rarely floccose to tomentose, grayish.
Stems	spreading, without persistent leaf bases, up to 1/3 height of plant; caudex stems absent or compact; aerial flowering stems spreading, slender, solid, not fistulose, (0.05–)0.1–0.8 dm, thinly pubescent or glabrous.	spreading or erect, usually without persistent leaf bases, up to 1/2 or more height of plant; caudex stems absent or matted to spreading; aerial flowering stems spreading to erect, slender, solid, not fistulose, 0.3–3 dm, glabrous or, rarely, floccose to tomentose, tomentose among leaves.
Leaves	cauline, 1 per node or fasciculate; petiole 0.05–0.1 cm, tomentose to floccose or glabrous; blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, (0.5–)2–6 × (0.03–)0.1–0.3 cm, densely to thinly white-tomentose abaxially, thinly so or glabrous and green adaxially, margins tightly revolute.	basal or cauline on proximal 1/2 of stem, 1 per node; petiole 0.5–2 cm, tomentose to floccose or glabrous; blade narrowly lanceolate or oblanceolate to elliptic, 1.5–7(–9) × 0.2–2 cm, velvety- to densely white-tomentose abaxially, sparsely tomentose to thinly floccose or glabrous and green adaxially, margins plane or occasionally crenulate.
Inflorescences	cymose, usually compact, (0.1–)2–12(–15) × (1–)4–15(–30) cm; branches dichotomous, thinly pubescent or glabrous; bracts 3, scalelike, triangular, (0.5–)1–4 mm.	cymose, dense to more commonly open, 2–25 × 2–20 cm; branches dichotomous, glabrous or, rarely, floccose; bracts 3, scalelike, usually triangular, and 1–3 mm, or occasionally leaflike, 8–30 mm, and otherwise similar to leaf blades.
Peduncles	absent or erect, 0.05–0.2 cm, glabrous.	absent or erect, 0.1–0.8 cm, glabrous.
Involucres	1 per node, narrowly turbinate, 2–4(–4.5) × 1–2 mm, glabrous; teeth 5, erect, 0.3–0.7 mm.	1 per node or 2–5 per cluster, turbinate to turbinate-campanulate, 2.5–4 × (1.3–)1.5–3.5(–4) mm, glabrous; teeth 5, erect, 0.4–0.9 mm.
Flowers	2.5–4 mm; perianth white, glabrous; tepals connate proximal 1/4, essentially monomorphic, oblong to narrowly obovate; stamens long-exserted, (2–)3–6 mm; filaments subglabrous or sparsely puberulent proximally.	2–3.5(–4) mm; perianth white, glabrous; tepals connate proximal 1/4–1/3, monomorphic, oblanceolate, elliptic to oblong or obovate; stamens exserted, 2–4 mm; filaments pilose proximally.
Achenes	brown, (2.5–)3.5–4 mm, glabrous.	light brown to brown, 2–3 mm, glabrous except (typically) for slightly papillate beak.
2n	= 40.

	Eriogonum leptophyllum	Eriogonum lonchophyllum
Phenology	Flowering Jul–Nov.	Flowering Jun–Oct.
Habitat	Clayey flats, slopes, and outcrops, mixed grassland and sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper woodlands	Heavy gumbo clay soil or (at higher elevations) sandy-loam to gravelly or rocky soil and outcrops, mixed grassland, saltbush, blackbrush, and sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper and montane conifer woodlands
Elevation	1500-2300 m (4900-7500 ft)	1400-2900 m (4600-9500 ft)
Distribution	AZ; CO; NM; UT [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	CO; NM; UT [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Discussion	Eriogonum leptophyllum is found mainly on southern Colorado Plateau in San Juan County, Utah, and adjacent Montezuma County, Colorado, southward into Apache County, Arizona, and in northwestern New Mexico (Bernalillo, Cibola, McKinley, Rio Arriba, Sandoval, San Juan, Santa Fe, and Taos counties). The species is found rarely in eastern Coconino and Navajo counties, Arizona, in the north, and in northern Gila County, Arizona, to the south. It is disjunct to the Bitter Spring Creek area of Capitol Reef National Park in Garfield County, Utah (R. Fleming 199, SJNM). The species, when dwarfed as it sometimes is on wind-swept ridges, resembles E. microthecum var. simpsonii, and has a form and aspect much more typical of that species than of the large, mature plants of E. leptophyllum. Mature plants on the southern edge of the range (as in McKinley County) tend to be grayish rather than the more common yellowish green seen elsewhere. This species is considered a “life medicine” by the Navajo (Diné) people (C. Arnold, pers. comm.), being used in a variety of ways, including as an analgesic, a gynecological aid, a snake-bite remedy (D. E. Moerman 1986), and in casting spells (Arnold Clifford, pers. comm.). P. A. Vestal (1952) listed similar uses of this species by the Ramah Navajo of northwestern New Mexico, including an infusion of roots for stomach trouble, a decoction of the whole plant for snake bite, and for postpartum pain. The species is cultivated occasionally as a horticultural novelty. There are two anomalous populations of particular interest. These occurred in the Broomfield area of San Juan County, New Mexico. The specimens are of low, spreading herbs to 0.8 dm with linear-oblong leaf blades 1–2 cm long but only 1–2 mm wide. The inflorescences are cymose but typically with one branch suppressed. A peduncle is present in some, this being up to 3.5 mm and erect; it is always at the basal node of the inflorescence. The involucres are turbinate and long (4–6 mm). A mature achene has not been observed. The plants flowered in late May and early June. Efforts to find such plants again have been unsuccessful. Searches in the late summer and early fall, when they ought to be in fruit, have found only plants that clearly can be assigned to Eriogonum leptophyllum. Generally, the two anomalous collections, both made by J. Mark Porter in the 1980s, resemble that species. Until such odd plants can be found again, and studied in detail, the significance of those populations cannot be ascertained. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)	Eriogonum lonchophyllum is widespread and occasionally rather common in sagebrush-dominated communities in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, northern New Mexico and eastern Utah. The distribution is fragmented, many of the populations are markedly distinct, and several have been provided with names. The continued recognition of E. coloradense is probably dubious given what is already reduced here to synonymy under E. lonchophyllum. Eriogonum lonchophyllum typically has glabrous flowering stems and inflorescence branches, yet floccose to tomentose individuals are known from Eagle (Reveal & Davidse 861, UTC) and Garfield (Goodrich & D. Nelson 24582, BRY) counties in Colorado. Plants representing the typical expression of the species differ from the majority of populations assigned here in having broad leaves and a sprawling habit. Such plants grow in deep shade under tall conifers and are known currently only from the type locality. Variation in the size, shape, and distribution of leaves has been used to distinguish varieties of E. lonchophyllum. At their extremes, the differences are remarkable. For example, plants with linear, basal leaves have been named var. nudicaule. Such plants are found in the New Mexico counties of Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and Santa Fe. Another herbaceous phase also with basal, but broader leaves and known from the Book Cliffs and Tavaputs Plateau regions of northeastern Emery, southern Uintah, and northern Grand counties, Utah, and in Rio Blanco County, Colorado, has been named var. intermontanum. The low, spreading subshrubby phase found along the foothills of the Front Ranges in south-central Colorado (El Paso, Fremont, Jefferson, Las Animas, Otero, and Pueblo counties) and adjacent north-central New Mexico (Colfax and Taos counties) is known as var. fendlerianum. These plants have velvety, tomentose leaf blades. Another shrubby phase is found in and around the Dinosaur National Park in Daggett and Uintah counties, Utah, and in northwestern Rio Blanco County, Colorado. This is var. saurinum, characterized by having sheathing leaf blades along the flowering stems that vary from narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic; it is occasionally confused with E. corymbosum in that area. At the north end of Mesa Verde National Park and on Sleeping Ute Mountain of Montezuma County, Colorado, is a large shrub that outwardly resembles E. corymbosum in size and shape. It is similar to, but larger than, the more eastern var. fendlerianum. The most common phase of the species (as represented by var. humivagans, including E. salicinum, E. scoparium, and E. tristichum) is found mainly on fine, clayey to gravelly, alluvial soils in the Rocky Mountains and western desert ranges of Colorado (Archuleta, Delta, Dolores, Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison, La Plata, Mesa, Moffat, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, Rio Blanco, Saguache, and San Miguel counties), northern New Mexico (Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and San Juan counties), and San Juan County, Utah. The majority of the plants have long, narrow leaf blades (2–5 mm wide), but populations with broader leaves are common in southwestern Colorado. It is this latter expression of E. lonchophyllum that can be difficult to distinguish from E. corymbosum in portions of eastern Utah and western Colorado. A single collection (Rammel s.n., 1872, MIN, US) was supposedly gathered in Texas. Until this is confirmed, the species is not considered to be part of the Texas flora. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 5, p. 251.	FNA vol. 5, p. 262.
Parent taxa	Polygonaceae > subfam. Eriogonoideae > Eriogonum > subg. Eucycla	Polygonaceae > subfam. Eriogonoideae > Eriogonum > subg. Eucycla
Sibling taxa	E. abertianum, E. acaule, E. alatum, E. aliquantum, E. allenii, E. alpinum, E. ammophilum, E. ampullaceum, E. androsaceum, E. anemophilum, E. angulosum, E. annuum, E. apiculatum, E. apricum, E. arborescens, E. arcuatum, E. aretioides, E. argillosum, E. argophyllum, E. arizonicum, E. artificis, E. atrorubens, E. baileyi, E. batemanii, E. bicolor, E. bifurcatum, E. brachyanthum, E. brachypodum, E. brandegeei, E. breedlovei, E. brevicaule, E. butterworthianum, E. caespitosum, E. capillare, E. cernuum, E. chrysops, E. cinereum, E. cithariforme, E. clavatum, E. clavellatum, E. codium, E. collinum, E. coloradense, E. compositum, E. concinnum, E. congdonii, E. contiguum, E. contortum, E. correllii, E. corymbosum, E. covilleanum, E. crocatum, E. cronquistii, E. crosbyae, E. cusickii, E. darrovii, E. dasyanthemum, E. davidsonii, E. deflexum, E. deserticola, E. desertorum, E. diatomaceum, E. diclinum, E. divaricatum, E. douglasii, E. eastwoodianum, E. effusum, E. elatum, E. elegans, E. elongatum, E. ephedroides, E. eremicola, E. eremicum, E. ericifolium, E. esmeraldense, E. evanidum, E. exaltatum, E. exilifolium, E. fasciculatum, E. flavum, E. fusiforme, E. giganteum, E. gilmanii, E. glandulosum, E. gordonii, E. gossypinum, E. gracile, E. gracilipes, E. gracillimum, E. grande, E. greggii, E. gypsophilum, E. havardii, E. heermannii, E. helichrysoides, E. hemipterum, E. heracleoides, E. hieracifolium, E. hirtellum, E. hirtiflorum, E. hoffmannii, E. holmgrenii, E. hookeri, E. howellianum, E. hylophilum, E. incanum, E. inerme, E. inflatum, E. intrafractum, E. jamesii, E. jonesii, E. kelloggii, E. kennedyi, E. kingii, E. lachnogynum, E. lancifolium, E. latens, E. latifolium, E. lemmonii, E. leptocladon, E. libertini, E. lobbii, E. loganum, E. lonchophyllum, E. longifolium, E. luteolum, E. maculatum, E. mancum, E. marifolium, E. mensicola, E. microthecum, E. mitophyllum, E. mohavense, E. molestum, E. mortonianum, E. multiflorum, E. natum, E. nealleyi, E. nervulosum, E. nidularium, E. niveum, E. nortonii, E. novonudum, E. nudum, E. nummulare, E. nutans, E. ochrocephalum, E. ordii, E. ostlundii, E. ovalifolium, E. palmerianum, E. panamintense, E. panguicense, E. parishii, E. parvifolium, E. pauciflorum, E. pelinophilum, E. pendulum, E. pharnaceoides, E. plumatella, E. polycladon, E. polypodum, E. prattenianum, E. prociduum, E. pulchrum, E. pusillum, E. pyrolifolium, E. racemosum, E. reniforme, E. ripleyi, E. rixfordii, E. robustum, E. rosense, E. roseum, E. rotundifolium, E. rubricaule, E. rupinum, E. salicornioides, E. saxatile, E. scabrellum, E. scopulorum, E. shockleyi, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. soliceps, E. soredium, E. spathulatum, E. spectabile, E. spergulinum, E. sphaerocephalum, E. strictum, E. subreniforme, E. suffruticosum, E. temblorense, E. tenellum, E. ternatum, E. terrenatum, E. thomasii, E. thompsoniae, E. thornei, E. thurberi, E. thymoides, E. tiehmii, E. tomentosum, E. trichopes, E. tripodum, E. truncatum, E. tumulosum, E. twisselmannii, E. umbellatum, E. ursinum, E. vestitum, E. villiflorum, E. vimineum, E. viridescens, E. viridulum, E. viscidulum, E. visheri, E. watsonii, E. wetherillii, E. wootonii, E. wrightii, E. zionis	E. abertianum, E. acaule, E. alatum, E. aliquantum, E. allenii, E. alpinum, E. ammophilum, E. ampullaceum, E. androsaceum, E. anemophilum, E. angulosum, E. annuum, E. apiculatum, E. apricum, E. arborescens, E. arcuatum, E. aretioides, E. argillosum, E. argophyllum, E. arizonicum, E. artificis, E. atrorubens, E. baileyi, E. batemanii, E. bicolor, E. bifurcatum, E. brachyanthum, E. brachypodum, E. brandegeei, E. breedlovei, E. brevicaule, E. butterworthianum, E. caespitosum, E. capillare, E. cernuum, E. chrysops, E. cinereum, E. cithariforme, E. clavatum, E. clavellatum, E. codium, E. collinum, E. coloradense, E. compositum, E. concinnum, E. congdonii, E. contiguum, E. contortum, E. correllii, E. corymbosum, E. covilleanum, E. crocatum, E. cronquistii, E. crosbyae, E. cusickii, E. darrovii, E. dasyanthemum, E. davidsonii, E. deflexum, E. deserticola, E. desertorum, E. diatomaceum, E. diclinum, E. divaricatum, E. douglasii, E. eastwoodianum, E. effusum, E. elatum, E. elegans, E. elongatum, E. ephedroides, E. eremicola, E. eremicum, E. ericifolium, E. esmeraldense, E. evanidum, E. exaltatum, E. exilifolium, E. fasciculatum, E. flavum, E. fusiforme, E. giganteum, E. gilmanii, E. glandulosum, E. gordonii, E. gossypinum, E. gracile, E. gracilipes, E. gracillimum, E. grande, E. greggii, E. gypsophilum, E. havardii, E. heermannii, E. helichrysoides, E. hemipterum, E. heracleoides, E. hieracifolium, E. hirtellum, E. hirtiflorum, E. hoffmannii, E. holmgrenii, E. hookeri, E. howellianum, E. hylophilum, E. incanum, E. inerme, E. inflatum, E. intrafractum, E. jamesii, E. jonesii, E. kelloggii, E. kennedyi, E. kingii, E. lachnogynum, E. lancifolium, E. latens, E. latifolium, E. lemmonii, E. leptocladon, E. leptophyllum, E. libertini, E. lobbii, E. loganum, E. longifolium, E. luteolum, E. maculatum, E. mancum, E. marifolium, E. mensicola, E. microthecum, E. mitophyllum, E. mohavense, E. molestum, E. mortonianum, E. multiflorum, E. natum, E. nealleyi, E. nervulosum, E. nidularium, E. niveum, E. nortonii, E. novonudum, E. nudum, E. nummulare, E. nutans, E. ochrocephalum, E. ordii, E. ostlundii, E. ovalifolium, E. palmerianum, E. panamintense, E. panguicense, E. parishii, E. parvifolium, E. pauciflorum, E. pelinophilum, E. pendulum, E. pharnaceoides, E. plumatella, E. polycladon, E. polypodum, E. prattenianum, E. prociduum, E. pulchrum, E. pusillum, E. pyrolifolium, E. racemosum, E. reniforme, E. ripleyi, E. rixfordii, E. robustum, E. rosense, E. roseum, E. rotundifolium, E. rubricaule, E. rupinum, E. salicornioides, E. saxatile, E. scabrellum, E. scopulorum, E. shockleyi, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. soliceps, E. soredium, E. spathulatum, E. spectabile, E. spergulinum, E. sphaerocephalum, E. strictum, E. subreniforme, E. suffruticosum, E. temblorense, E. tenellum, E. ternatum, E. terrenatum, E. thomasii, E. thompsoniae, E. thornei, E. thurberi, E. thymoides, E. tiehmii, E. tomentosum, E. trichopes, E. tripodum, E. truncatum, E. tumulosum, E. twisselmannii, E. umbellatum, E. ursinum, E. vestitum, E. villiflorum, E. vimineum, E. viridescens, E. viridulum, E. viscidulum, E. visheri, E. watsonii, E. wetherillii, E. wootonii, E. wrightii, E. zionis
Synonyms	E. effusum var. leptophyllum	E. ainsliei, E. corymbosum var. humivagans, E. effusum subsp. ainsliei, E. effusum subsp. fendlerianum, E. effusum var. nudicaule, E. effusum subsp. salicinum, E. fendlerianum, E. humivagans, E. intermontanum, E. lonchophyllum var. fendlerianum, E. lonchophyllum var. humivagans, E. lonchophyllum var. intermontanum, E. lonchophyllum var. nudicaule, E. lonchophyllum var. saurinum, E. nudicaule, E. nudicaule subsp. scoparium, E. nudicaule subsp. tristichum, E. salicinum, E. saurinum, E. scoparium, E. tristichum
Name authority	(Torrey) Wooton & Standley: Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 16: 118. (1913)	Torrey & A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 8: 173. (1870)
Web links	Local Web sites: SW CO Wildflowers WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local Web sites: SW CO Wildflowers WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Eriogonum lonchophyllum

slender-leaf wild buckwheat, slenderleaf buckwheat

spearleaf buckwheat, spearleaf wild buckwheat, spreading wild buckwheat

Habit

Shrubs or subshrubs, rounded to spreading, not scapose, (0.5–)2–8(–13) × (1–)3–15(–18) dm, thinly pubescent or glabrous and green, yellowish green or infrequently grayish, occasionally papillate.

Shrubs, subshrubs, or herbs, spreading to erect, not scapose, (1–)1.5–5 × 2–5(–8) dm, glabrous or rarely floccose to tomentose, grayish.

Stems

spreading, without persistent leaf bases, up to 1/3 height of plant;

caudex stems absent or compact;

aerial flowering stems spreading, slender, solid, not fistulose, (0.05–)0.1–0.8 dm, thinly pubescent or glabrous.

spreading or erect, usually without persistent leaf bases, up to 1/2 or more height of plant;

caudex stems absent or matted to spreading;

aerial flowering stems spreading to erect, slender, solid, not fistulose, 0.3–3 dm, glabrous or, rarely, floccose to tomentose, tomentose among leaves.

Leaves

cauline, 1 per node or fasciculate;

petiole 0.05–0.1 cm, tomentose to floccose or glabrous;

blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, (0.5–)2–6 × (0.03–)0.1–0.3 cm, densely to thinly white-tomentose abaxially, thinly so or glabrous and green adaxially, margins tightly revolute.

basal or cauline on proximal 1/2 of stem, 1 per node;

petiole 0.5–2 cm, tomentose to floccose or glabrous;

blade narrowly lanceolate or oblanceolate to elliptic, 1.5–7(–9) × 0.2–2 cm, velvety- to densely white-tomentose abaxially, sparsely tomentose to thinly floccose or glabrous and green adaxially, margins plane or occasionally crenulate.

Inflorescences

cymose, usually compact, (0.1–)2–12(–15) × (1–)4–15(–30) cm;

branches dichotomous, thinly pubescent or glabrous;

bracts 3, scalelike, triangular, (0.5–)1–4 mm.

cymose, dense to more commonly open, 2–25 × 2–20 cm;

branches dichotomous, glabrous or, rarely, floccose;

bracts 3, scalelike, usually triangular, and 1–3 mm, or occasionally leaflike, 8–30 mm, and otherwise similar to leaf blades.

Peduncles

absent or erect, 0.05–0.2 cm, glabrous.

absent or erect, 0.1–0.8 cm, glabrous.

Involucres

1 per node, narrowly turbinate, 2–4(–4.5) × 1–2 mm, glabrous;

teeth 5, erect, 0.3–0.7 mm.

1 per node or 2–5 per cluster, turbinate to turbinate-campanulate, 2.5–4 × (1.3–)1.5–3.5(–4) mm, glabrous;

teeth 5, erect, 0.4–0.9 mm.

Flowers

2.5–4 mm;

perianth white, glabrous;

tepals connate proximal 1/4, essentially monomorphic, oblong to narrowly obovate;

stamens long-exserted, (2–)3–6 mm;

filaments subglabrous or sparsely puberulent proximally.

2–3.5(–4) mm;

perianth white, glabrous;

tepals connate proximal 1/4–1/3, monomorphic, oblanceolate, elliptic to oblong or obovate;

stamens exserted, 2–4 mm;

filaments pilose proximally.

Achenes

brown, (2.5–)3.5–4 mm, glabrous.

light brown to brown, 2–3 mm, glabrous except (typically) for slightly papillate beak.

= 40.

Eriogonum leptophyllum

Eriogonum lonchophyllum

Phenology

Flowering Jul–Nov.

Flowering Jun–Oct.

Habitat

Clayey flats, slopes, and outcrops, mixed grassland and sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper woodlands

Heavy gumbo clay soil or (at higher elevations) sandy-loam to gravelly or rocky soil and outcrops, mixed grassland, saltbush, blackbrush, and sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper and montane conifer woodlands

Elevation

1500-2300 m (4900-7500 ft)

1400-2900 m (4600-9500 ft)

Distribution

AZ; CO; NM; UT

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

CO; NM; UT

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Eriogonum leptophyllum is found mainly on southern Colorado Plateau in San Juan County, Utah, and adjacent Montezuma County, Colorado, southward into Apache County, Arizona, and in northwestern New Mexico (Bernalillo, Cibola, McKinley, Rio Arriba, Sandoval, San Juan, Santa Fe, and Taos counties). The species is found rarely in eastern Coconino and Navajo counties, Arizona, in the north, and in northern Gila County, Arizona, to the south. It is disjunct to the Bitter Spring Creek area of Capitol Reef National Park in Garfield County, Utah (R. Fleming 199, SJNM). The species, when dwarfed as it sometimes is on wind-swept ridges, resembles E. microthecum var. simpsonii, and has a form and aspect much more typical of that species than of the large, mature plants of E. leptophyllum. Mature plants on the southern edge of the range (as in McKinley County) tend to be grayish rather than the more common yellowish green seen elsewhere.

This species is considered a “life medicine” by the Navajo (Diné) people (C. Arnold, pers. comm.), being used in a variety of ways, including as an analgesic, a gynecological aid, a snake-bite remedy (D. E. Moerman 1986), and in casting spells (Arnold Clifford, pers. comm.). P. A. Vestal (1952) listed similar uses of this species by the Ramah Navajo of northwestern New Mexico, including an infusion of roots for stomach trouble, a decoction of the whole plant for snake bite, and for postpartum pain. The species is cultivated occasionally as a horticultural novelty.

There are two anomalous populations of particular interest. These occurred in the Broomfield area of San Juan County, New Mexico. The specimens are of low, spreading herbs to 0.8 dm with linear-oblong leaf blades 1–2 cm long but only 1–2 mm wide. The inflorescences are cymose but typically with one branch suppressed. A peduncle is present in some, this being up to 3.5 mm and erect; it is always at the basal node of the inflorescence. The involucres are turbinate and long (4–6 mm). A mature achene has not been observed. The plants flowered in late May and early June. Efforts to find such plants again have been unsuccessful. Searches in the late summer and early fall, when they ought to be in fruit, have found only plants that clearly can be assigned to Eriogonum leptophyllum. Generally, the two anomalous collections, both made by J. Mark Porter in the 1980s, resemble that species. Until such odd plants can be found again, and studied in detail, the significance of those populations cannot be ascertained.

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

Eriogonum lonchophyllum is widespread and occasionally rather common in sagebrush-dominated communities in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, northern New Mexico and eastern Utah. The distribution is fragmented, many of the populations are markedly distinct, and several have been provided with names. The continued recognition of E. coloradense is probably dubious given what is already reduced here to synonymy under E. lonchophyllum. Eriogonum lonchophyllum typically has glabrous flowering stems and inflorescence branches, yet floccose to tomentose individuals are known from Eagle (Reveal & Davidse 861, UTC) and Garfield (Goodrich & D. Nelson 24582, BRY) counties in Colorado. Plants representing the typical expression of the species differ from the majority of populations assigned here in having broad leaves and a sprawling habit. Such plants grow in deep shade under tall conifers and are known currently only from the type locality. Variation in the size, shape, and distribution of leaves has been used to distinguish varieties of E. lonchophyllum. At their extremes, the differences are remarkable. For example, plants with linear, basal leaves have been named var. nudicaule. Such plants are found in the New Mexico counties of Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and Santa Fe. Another herbaceous phase also with basal, but broader leaves and known from the Book Cliffs and Tavaputs Plateau regions of northeastern Emery, southern Uintah, and northern Grand counties, Utah, and in Rio Blanco County, Colorado, has been named var. intermontanum. The low, spreading subshrubby phase found along the foothills of the Front Ranges in south-central Colorado (El Paso, Fremont, Jefferson, Las Animas, Otero, and Pueblo counties) and adjacent north-central New Mexico (Colfax and Taos counties) is known as var. fendlerianum. These plants have velvety, tomentose leaf blades. Another shrubby phase is found in and around the Dinosaur National Park in Daggett and Uintah counties, Utah, and in northwestern Rio Blanco County, Colorado. This is var. saurinum, characterized by having sheathing leaf blades along the flowering stems that vary from narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic; it is occasionally confused with E. corymbosum in that area. At the north end of Mesa Verde National Park and on Sleeping Ute Mountain of Montezuma County, Colorado, is a large shrub that outwardly resembles E. corymbosum in size and shape. It is similar to, but larger than, the more eastern var. fendlerianum. The most common phase of the species (as represented by var. humivagans, including E. salicinum, E. scoparium, and E. tristichum) is found mainly on fine, clayey to gravelly, alluvial soils in the Rocky Mountains and western desert ranges of Colorado (Archuleta, Delta, Dolores, Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison, La Plata, Mesa, Moffat, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, Rio Blanco, Saguache, and San Miguel counties), northern New Mexico (Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and San Juan counties), and San Juan County, Utah. The majority of the plants have long, narrow leaf blades (2–5 mm wide), but populations with broader leaves are common in southwestern Colorado. It is this latter expression of E. lonchophyllum that can be difficult to distinguish from E. corymbosum in portions of eastern Utah and western Colorado. A single collection (Rammel s.n., 1872, MIN, US) was supposedly gathered in Texas. Until this is confirmed, the species is not considered to be part of the Texas flora.

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

Source

FNA vol. 5, p. 251.

FNA vol. 5, p. 262.

Parent taxa

Polygonaceae > subfam. Eriogonoideae > Eriogonum > subg. Eucycla

Sibling taxa

E. abertianum, E. acaule, E. alatum, E. aliquantum, E. allenii, E. alpinum, E. ammophilum, E. ampullaceum, E. androsaceum, E. anemophilum, E. angulosum, E. annuum, E. apiculatum, E. apricum, E. arborescens, E. arcuatum, E. aretioides, E. argillosum, E. argophyllum, E. arizonicum, E. artificis, E. atrorubens, E. baileyi, E. batemanii, E. bicolor, E. bifurcatum, E. brachyanthum, E. brachypodum, E. brandegeei, E. breedlovei, E. brevicaule, E. butterworthianum, E. caespitosum, E. capillare, E. cernuum, E. chrysops, E. cinereum, E. cithariforme, E. clavatum, E. clavellatum, E. codium, E. collinum, E. coloradense, E. compositum, E. concinnum, E. congdonii, E. contiguum, E. contortum, E. correllii, E. corymbosum, E. covilleanum, E. crocatum, E. cronquistii, E. crosbyae, E. cusickii, E. darrovii, E. dasyanthemum, E. davidsonii, E. deflexum, E. deserticola, E. desertorum, E. diatomaceum, E. diclinum, E. divaricatum, E. douglasii, E. eastwoodianum, E. effusum, E. elatum, E. elegans, E. elongatum, E. ephedroides, E. eremicola, E. eremicum, E. ericifolium, E. esmeraldense, E. evanidum, E. exaltatum, E. exilifolium, E. fasciculatum, E. flavum, E. fusiforme, E. giganteum, E. gilmanii, E. glandulosum, E. gordonii, E. gossypinum, E. gracile, E. gracilipes, E. gracillimum, E. grande, E. greggii, E. gypsophilum, E. havardii, E. heermannii, E. helichrysoides, E. hemipterum, E. heracleoides, E. hieracifolium, E. hirtellum, E. hirtiflorum, E. hoffmannii, E. holmgrenii, E. hookeri, E. howellianum, E. hylophilum, E. incanum, E. inerme, E. inflatum, E. intrafractum, E. jamesii, E. jonesii, E. kelloggii, E. kennedyi, E. kingii, E. lachnogynum, E. lancifolium, E. latens, E. latifolium, E. lemmonii, E. leptocladon, E. libertini, E. lobbii, E. loganum, E. lonchophyllum, E. longifolium, E. luteolum, E. maculatum, E. mancum, E. marifolium, E. mensicola, E. microthecum, E. mitophyllum, E. mohavense, E. molestum, E. mortonianum, E. multiflorum, E. natum, E. nealleyi, E. nervulosum, E. nidularium, E. niveum, E. nortonii, E. novonudum, E. nudum, E. nummulare, E. nutans, E. ochrocephalum, E. ordii, E. ostlundii, E. ovalifolium, E. palmerianum, E. panamintense, E. panguicense, E. parishii, E. parvifolium, E. pauciflorum, E. pelinophilum, E. pendulum, E. pharnaceoides, E. plumatella, E. polycladon, E. polypodum, E. prattenianum, E. prociduum, E. pulchrum, E. pusillum, E. pyrolifolium, E. racemosum, E. reniforme, E. ripleyi, E. rixfordii, E. robustum, E. rosense, E. roseum, E. rotundifolium, E. rubricaule, E. rupinum, E. salicornioides, E. saxatile, E. scabrellum, E. scopulorum, E. shockleyi, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. soliceps, E. soredium, E. spathulatum, E. spectabile, E. spergulinum, E. sphaerocephalum, E. strictum, E. subreniforme, E. suffruticosum, E. temblorense, E. tenellum, E. ternatum, E. terrenatum, E. thomasii, E. thompsoniae, E. thornei, E. thurberi, E. thymoides, E. tiehmii, E. tomentosum, E. trichopes, E. tripodum, E. truncatum, E. tumulosum, E. twisselmannii, E. umbellatum, E. ursinum, E. vestitum, E. villiflorum, E. vimineum, E. viridescens, E. viridulum, E. viscidulum, E. visheri, E. watsonii, E. wetherillii, E. wootonii, E. wrightii, E. zionis

E. abertianum, E. acaule, E. alatum, E. aliquantum, E. allenii, E. alpinum, E. ammophilum, E. ampullaceum, E. androsaceum, E. anemophilum, E. angulosum, E. annuum, E. apiculatum, E. apricum, E. arborescens, E. arcuatum, E. aretioides, E. argillosum, E. argophyllum, E. arizonicum, E. artificis, E. atrorubens, E. baileyi, E. batemanii, E. bicolor, E. bifurcatum, E. brachyanthum, E. brachypodum, E. brandegeei, E. breedlovei, E. brevicaule, E. butterworthianum, E. caespitosum, E. capillare, E. cernuum, E. chrysops, E. cinereum, E. cithariforme, E. clavatum, E. clavellatum, E. codium, E. collinum, E. coloradense, E. compositum, E. concinnum, E. congdonii, E. contiguum, E. contortum, E. correllii, E. corymbosum, E. covilleanum, E. crocatum, E. cronquistii, E. crosbyae, E. cusickii, E. darrovii, E. dasyanthemum, E. davidsonii, E. deflexum, E. deserticola, E. desertorum, E. diatomaceum, E. diclinum, E. divaricatum, E. douglasii, E. eastwoodianum, E. effusum, E. elatum, E. elegans, E. elongatum, E. ephedroides, E. eremicola, E. eremicum, E. ericifolium, E. esmeraldense, E. evanidum, E. exaltatum, E. exilifolium, E. fasciculatum, E. flavum, E. fusiforme, E. giganteum, E. gilmanii, E. glandulosum, E. gordonii, E. gossypinum, E. gracile, E. gracilipes, E. gracillimum, E. grande, E. greggii, E. gypsophilum, E. havardii, E. heermannii, E. helichrysoides, E. hemipterum, E. heracleoides, E. hieracifolium, E. hirtellum, E. hirtiflorum, E. hoffmannii, E. holmgrenii, E. hookeri, E. howellianum, E. hylophilum, E. incanum, E. inerme, E. inflatum, E. intrafractum, E. jamesii, E. jonesii, E. kelloggii, E. kennedyi, E. kingii, E. lachnogynum, E. lancifolium, E. latens, E. latifolium, E. lemmonii, E. leptocladon, E. leptophyllum, E. libertini, E. lobbii, E. loganum, E. longifolium, E. luteolum, E. maculatum, E. mancum, E. marifolium, E. mensicola, E. microthecum, E. mitophyllum, E. mohavense, E. molestum, E. mortonianum, E. multiflorum, E. natum, E. nealleyi, E. nervulosum, E. nidularium, E. niveum, E. nortonii, E. novonudum, E. nudum, E. nummulare, E. nutans, E. ochrocephalum, E. ordii, E. ostlundii, E. ovalifolium, E. palmerianum, E. panamintense, E. panguicense, E. parishii, E. parvifolium, E. pauciflorum, E. pelinophilum, E. pendulum, E. pharnaceoides, E. plumatella, E. polycladon, E. polypodum, E. prattenianum, E. prociduum, E. pulchrum, E. pusillum, E. pyrolifolium, E. racemosum, E. reniforme, E. ripleyi, E. rixfordii, E. robustum, E. rosense, E. roseum, E. rotundifolium, E. rubricaule, E. rupinum, E. salicornioides, E. saxatile, E. scabrellum, E. scopulorum, E. shockleyi, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. soliceps, E. soredium, E. spathulatum, E. spectabile, E. spergulinum, E. sphaerocephalum, E. strictum, E. subreniforme, E. suffruticosum, E. temblorense, E. tenellum, E. ternatum, E. terrenatum, E. thomasii, E. thompsoniae, E. thornei, E. thurberi, E. thymoides, E. tiehmii, E. tomentosum, E. trichopes, E. tripodum, E. truncatum, E. tumulosum, E. twisselmannii, E. umbellatum, E. ursinum, E. vestitum, E. villiflorum, E. vimineum, E. viridescens, E. viridulum, E. viscidulum, E. visheri, E. watsonii, E. wetherillii, E. wootonii, E. wrightii, E. zionis

Synonyms

E. effusum var. leptophyllum

E. ainsliei, E. corymbosum var. humivagans, E. effusum subsp. ainsliei, E. effusum subsp. fendlerianum, E. effusum var. nudicaule, E. effusum subsp. salicinum, E. fendlerianum, E. humivagans, E. intermontanum, E. lonchophyllum var. fendlerianum, E. lonchophyllum var. humivagans, E. lonchophyllum var. intermontanum, E. lonchophyllum var. nudicaule, E. lonchophyllum var. saurinum, E. nudicaule, E. nudicaule subsp. scoparium, E. nudicaule subsp. tristichum, E. salicinum, E. saurinum, E. scoparium, E. tristichum

Name authority

(Torrey) Wooton & Standley: Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 16: 118. (1913)

Torrey & A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 8: 173. (1870)

Web links

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Eriogonum leptophyllum

Eriogonum lonchophyllum

Eriogonum leptophyllum

Eriogonum lonchophyllum