Flora of North America species comparison

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Primula suffrutescens

Sierra primrose, Sierran primrose
Habit Plants evergreen, semiwoody, (mat-forming, leaves densely marcescent along stem base), 5–15 cm; rhizomes stout, long; rosettes multiple, forming mats, in apical clusters arising off stems; vegetative parts efarinose but often glandular.
Leaves

not aromatic, indistinctly petiolate;

petiole winged;

blade without deep reticulate veins abaxially, cuneate-spatulate, 4 × 0.5–1 cm, succulent, margins crenate to dentate with 6–8 teeth, apex obtuse, surfaces glabrous.
Inflorescences

2–9-flowered;

involucral bracts plane at base, unequal.
Pedicels

erect, thin, 4–12 mm, length 2–4 times bracts, stiff.
Flowers

heterostylous;

calyx green, urceolate, 4–8 mm;

corolla rose-pink, tube 6–10 mm, length 2 times calyx, glandular, limb 10–20 mm diam., lobes 5–10 mm, apex emarginate.
Capsules

globose, length 0.7–0.8 times calyx.
Seeds

with flanged edges, reticulate.
2n

= 44.

Primula suffrutescens
Phenology Flowering summer.
Habitat Rocky alpine slopes in weathered granite soils and rock fissures
Elevation 3300+ m (10800+ ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Primula suffrutescens is unusual in the genus, and unique among North American representatives, in forming mats with semiwoody stems carrying withered remains of old leaves on the lower portions of the stems, and evergreen leaf clusters on the distal portions.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 298.
Parent taxa Primulaceae > Primula
Sibling taxa
P. alcalina, P. angustifolia, P. anvilensis, P. borealis, P. capillaris, P. cuneifolia, P. cusickiana, P. egaliksensis, P. incana, P. laurentiana, P. mistassinica, P. nutans, P. parryi, P. pumila, P. rusbyi, P. specuicola, P. stricta, P. tschuktschorum, P. veris
Name authority A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 7: 371. 1868 ,
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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