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Bell's or Front Range twinpod, Bell's twinpod, Front Range twinpod

straight bladderpod

Habit Perennials; caudex simple, (relatively large); densely (silvery) pubescent, trichomes (sessile, appressed), rays furcate, fused at base. Perennials; (loose, spreading); caudex simple or branched; densely pubescent, trichomes (subsessile), 4–6-rayed, rays furcate or bifurcate, (moderately tuberculate over arms, less so or smooth over center).
Stems

simple from base, decumbent to nearly prostrate, 0.5–1.3 dm.

few to several from base, ascending or prostrate, (arising laterally, also from within basal leaves, usually unbranched, rarely branched), 0.5–3(–6) dm.

Basal leaves

(strongly rosulate; shortly petiolate);

blade broadly obovate, 1.5–7.5 (width 7.5–26 mm, base gradually tapering to petiole), margins shallowly dentate, (apex obtuse).

blade narrowly oblanceolate or broadly elliptic, 1–7(–12) cm, margins entire or shallowly toothed, sometimes repand, (inner blades usually flattened in age, surfaces often gray-green, scabrous).

Cauline leaves

blade oblanceolate to broadly obovate, 1–2.5 cm, margins entire.

(usually secund);

blade spatulate or obovate, 1–2.5(–4.5) cm, margins entire or shallowly toothed, (flat or involute).

Racemes

dense.

somewhat crowded (to moderately elongated in fruit, exceeding basal leaves).

Flowers

sepals (pale yellow or yellow-green), narrowly lanceolate to narrowly deltate, 4–8 mm;

petals yellow, broadly spatulate to obovate, 9–13 mm, (not clawed).

sepals broadly elliptic or oblong, 4–7.5(–9) mm, (median pair thickened apically, cucullate);

petals cuneate or obovate, 7–10(–16) mm, (tapering gradually to broad claw).

Fruiting pedicels

(divaricate-ascending to widely spreading, slightly sigmoid to curved), 7–12 mm.

(often divaricate-spreading and straight, or horizontal and loosely sigmoid, sometimes slightly recurved), 5–15 mm.

Fruits

didymous, slightly flattened (contrary to replum) to uncompressed, 4–9 × 2–8 mm, (strongly coriaceous, apical and basal sinuses narrow, deep);

valves (retaining seeds after dehiscence), pubescent, trichomes appressed;

replum narrowly oblanceolate to narrowly linear-oblong, as wide as or wider than fruit, apex obtuse;

ovules 4 per ovary;

style more than 3 mm.

subglobose to ovoid or ellipsoid, sometimes compressed, (4–)5–7(–9) mm;

valves sparsely pubescent, trichomes appressed or erect, sometimes sparsely pubescent inside;

ovules (8–)12–16(–20) per ovary;

style 2–7 mm.

Seeds

compressed.

somewhat flattened.

2n

= 8.

= 10 + 2, 18, 20, ± 40.

Physaria bellii

Physaria rectipes

Phenology Flowering Mar–Jun(-Jul). Flowering May–Jul.
Habitat Dark shale, road cuts, ridge crests, washes Sandy soils, limey knolls, rocky hills, clay hillsides, dry ridges, weathered rocks, gravelly outwashes, stony slopes, pinyon-juniper woodlands
Elevation 1500-1800 m (4900-5900 ft) 1500-2600 m (4900-8500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CO
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CO; NM; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Of conservation concern.

Physaria bellii is often found in shale and limestone soils of the Fountain/Ingleside, Lykins, Niobrara, and Pierre formations. It is in the Center for Plant Conservation’s National Collection of Endangered Plants.

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

As here circumscribed, Physaria rectipes remains heterogeneous and may represent more than one taxon, even after the recent removal of P. pulvinata.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 628. FNA vol. 7, p. 660.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Physarieae > Physaria Brassicaceae > tribe Physarieae > Physaria
Sibling taxa
P. acutifolia, P. alpestris, P. alpina, P. angustifolia, P. arctica, P. arenosa, P. argyraea, P. arizonica, P. aurea, P. brassicoides, P. calcicola, P. calderi, P. carinata, P. chambersii, P. cinerea, P. condensata, P. congesta, P. cordiformis, P. curvipes, P. densiflora, P. didymocarpa, P. dornii, P. douglasii, P. eburniflora, P. engelmannii, P. eriocarpa, P. fendleri, P. filiformis, P. floribunda, P. fremontii, P. garrettii, P. geyeri, P. globosa, P. gooddingii, P. gordonii, P. gracilis, P. grahamii, P. hemiphysaria, P. hitchcockii, P. humilis, P. integrifolia, P. intermedia, P. kingii, P. klausii, P. lata, P. lepidota, P. lesicii, P. lindheimeri, P. ludoviciana, P. macrocarpa, P. mcvaughiana, P. montana, P. multiceps, P. navajoensis, P. nelsonii, P. newberryi, P. obcordata, P. obdeltata, P. occidentalis, P. oregona, P. ovalifolia, P. pachyphylla, P. pallida, P. parviflora, P. parvula, P. pendula, P. pinetorum, P. prostrata, P. pruinosa, P. pulvinata, P. purpurea, P. pycnantha, P. rectipes, P. recurvata, P. reediana, P. rollinsii, P. saximontana, P. scrotiformis, P. sessilis, P. spatulata, P. subumbellata, P. tenella, P. thamnophila, P. tumulosa, P. valida, P. vicina, P. vitulifera
P. acutifolia, P. alpestris, P. alpina, P. angustifolia, P. arctica, P. arenosa, P. argyraea, P. arizonica, P. aurea, P. bellii, P. brassicoides, P. calcicola, P. calderi, P. carinata, P. chambersii, P. cinerea, P. condensata, P. congesta, P. cordiformis, P. curvipes, P. densiflora, P. didymocarpa, P. dornii, P. douglasii, P. eburniflora, P. engelmannii, P. eriocarpa, P. fendleri, P. filiformis, P. floribunda, P. fremontii, P. garrettii, P. geyeri, P. globosa, P. gooddingii, P. gordonii, P. gracilis, P. grahamii, P. hemiphysaria, P. hitchcockii, P. humilis, P. integrifolia, P. intermedia, P. kingii, P. klausii, P. lata, P. lepidota, P. lesicii, P. lindheimeri, P. ludoviciana, P. macrocarpa, P. mcvaughiana, P. montana, P. multiceps, P. navajoensis, P. nelsonii, P. newberryi, P. obcordata, P. obdeltata, P. occidentalis, P. oregona, P. ovalifolia, P. pachyphylla, P. pallida, P. parviflora, P. parvula, P. pendula, P. pinetorum, P. prostrata, P. pruinosa, P. pulvinata, P. purpurea, P. pycnantha, P. recurvata, P. reediana, P. rollinsii, P. saximontana, P. scrotiformis, P. sessilis, P. spatulata, P. subumbellata, P. tenella, P. thamnophila, P. tumulosa, P. valida, P. vicina, P. vitulifera
Synonyms Lesquerella rectipes
Name authority G. A. Mulligan: Canad. J. Bot. 44: 1662, fig. 1, plate 1, fig. 3. (1966) (Wooton & Standley) O’Kane & Al-Shehbaz: Novon 12: 327. (2002)
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