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dotted saxifrage, heartleaf saxifrage, Nelson's saxifrage, saxifrage

Idaho saxifrage

Habit Plants solitary or tufted, with bulbils on branched caudices, rhizomatous. Plants solitary or tufted, with bulbils on caudices.
Leaves

basal;

petiole rounded, 3–30 cm;

blade reniform to round, 2–9 cm, thin or slightly fleshy, sometimes thick and fleshy, base cordate, margins deeply crenate, eciliate or sparsely short glandular-ciliate, surfaces glabrous or ± hairy.

basal;

petiole flattened, 1–5 cm;

blade ovate to elliptic, 1–4 cm, ± fleshy, base attenuate, margins shallowly serrate to dentate (teeth usually to 1 mm), sparsely ciliate, surfaces tangled, reddish brown-hairy abaxially, glabrate adaxially.

Inflorescences

10+-flowered, ± open, lax to congested, conic, sometimes also glomerate thyrses, 10–35 cm, tangled-hairy (pilose-arachnoid) at least distally, sometimes also purple- or brown-tipped stipitate-glandular.

15+-flowered, open thyrses, (flowers ± crowded at tips, becoming more open in fruit), 10–40 cm, purple-tipped stipitate-glandular.

Flowers

sepals reflexed, ± ovate;

petals white to pinkish, rarely orange-spotted, ovate to oblong, narrowly to broadly clawed, 2.5–4.5 mm, longer than sepals;

filaments distinctly club-shaped;

pistils connate 1/2–3/4 their lengths;

ovary superior (to 1/3 adnate to hypanthium).

sepals reflexed, ovate to oblong;

petals white, with 2 basal yellow spots (often faded when dried), elliptic to ovate, clawed to nearly not clawed, 1–3.5 mm, ± equaling sepals;

filaments club-shaped, not petaloid, (equaling petals);

pistils distinct almost to base;

ovary superior, (to 1/3 adnate to hypanthium).

Capsules

green to yellow and purplish tinged to dark purple, valvate.

green to reddish purple, folliclelike.

2n

= 20.

Micranthes nelsoniana

Micranthes idahoensis

Phenology Flowering spring–early summer.
Habitat Open ledges and slopes
Elevation 500-2500 m (1600-8200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; OR; WA; AB; BC; NT; NU; YT; Europe (ne Russia); Asia
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
ID; MT; OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 6 (5 in the flora).

Although sometimes reported for North America, Saxifraga nelsoniana var. aestivalis (Fischer & C. A. Meyer) H. Ohba (S. aestivalis Fischer & C. A. Meyer) is found only in Eurasia.

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

Micranthes idahoensis appears to hybridize with M. occidentalis where their ranges overlap. Intermediates are abundant in some populations along the Idaho-Montana border and in Montana. This phenomenon may explain the range of filament shapes found in M. occidentalis, from flattened to sightly club-shaped. The issue of the status of M. idahoensis with respect to M. marshallii (D. L. Krause and K. I. Beamish 1972) is best deferred until a thorough study of the whole complex over its entire range is done.

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

Key
1. Inflorescences purple- or brown-tipped stipitate- glandular.
var. nelsoniana
1. Inflorescences tangled-hairy
→ 2
2. Leaf blade margins 9-12-toothed; capsules 6-12 mm; mostly Queen Charlotte Islands, adjacent coastal British Columbia.
var. carlottae
2. Leaf blade margins 12-18-toothed; capsules 3-8 mm; Oregon to Alaska and nw Canada
→ 3
3. Inflorescences somewhat lax, hairs appressed; Coast Ranges and Cascades, British Columbia, Oregon, Washington.
var. cascadensis
3. Inflorescences congested, hairs ascending; nw Canada, Alaska
→ 4
4. Leaf blades thick, fleshy; pistils connate most of their lengths; Aleutian Islands, Alaska.
var. insularis
4. Leaf blades thin, not fleshy; pistils connate to 3/4 their lengths; nw Canada, Alaska.
var. porsildiana
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 54. FNA vol. 8, p. 64.
Parent taxa Saxifragaceae > Micranthes Saxifragaceae > Micranthes
Sibling taxa
M. apetala, M. aprica, M. bryophora, M. californica, M. calycina, M. careyana, M. caroliniana, M. eriophora, M. ferruginea, M. foliolosa, M. fragosa, M. gaspensis, M. gormanii, M. hieraciifolia, M. hitchcockiana, M. howellii, M. idahoensis, M. integrifolia, M. lyallii, M. marshallii, M. micranthidifolia, M. nidifica, M. nivalis, M. nudicaulis, M. occidentalis, M. odontoloma, M. oregana, M. palmeri, M. pensylvanica, M. petiolaris, M. razshivinii, M. reflexa, M. rhomboidea, M. rufidula, M. spicata, M. stellaris, M. subapetala, M. tempestiva, M. tenuis, M. texana, M. tischii, M. tolmiei, M. unalaschcensis, M. virginiensis
M. apetala, M. aprica, M. bryophora, M. californica, M. calycina, M. careyana, M. caroliniana, M. eriophora, M. ferruginea, M. foliolosa, M. fragosa, M. gaspensis, M. gormanii, M. hieraciifolia, M. hitchcockiana, M. howellii, M. integrifolia, M. lyallii, M. marshallii, M. micranthidifolia, M. nelsoniana, M. nidifica, M. nivalis, M. nudicaulis, M. occidentalis, M. odontoloma, M. oregana, M. palmeri, M. pensylvanica, M. petiolaris, M. razshivinii, M. reflexa, M. rhomboidea, M. rufidula, M. spicata, M. stellaris, M. subapetala, M. tempestiva, M. tenuis, M. texana, M. tischii, M. tolmiei, M. unalaschcensis, M. virginiensis
Subordinate taxa
M. nelsoniana var. carlottae, M. nelsoniana var. cascadensis, M. nelsoniana var. insularis, M. nelsoniana var. nelsoniana, M. nelsoniana var. porsildiana
Synonyms Saxifraga nelsoniana, Saxifraga punctata subsp. nelsoniana, Saxifraga punctata var. nelsoniana Saxifraga idahoensis, Saxifraga marshallii subsp. idahoensis, Saxifraga marshallii var. idahoensis, Saxifraga occidentalis var. idahoensis
Name authority (D. Don) Small: in N. L. Britton et al., N. Amer. Fl. 22: 147. 1905 , (Piper) Brouillet & Gornall: J. Bot. Res. Inst. Texas 1: 1020. 2007 ,
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