Rumex densiflorus |
Rumex californicus |
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dense-flower dock |
California dock, California willow dock, tooth willow dock |
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Habit | Plants perennial, glabrous or indistinctly papillose-pubescent, with creeping horizontal rhizome. | Plants perennial, glabrous, with vertical rootstock. |
Stems | erect, branched above middle (only in inflorescence), 50–100 cm. |
usually ascending, rarely decumbent-ascending or suberect, usually producing axillary shoots below 1st-order inflorescence or at proximal nodes, 30–60 cm. |
Leaves | ocrea deciduous or partially persistent at maturity; blade with large lateral veins alternating with short ones, oblong or oblong-lanceolate, 30–40(–50) × 10–12 cm, more than 3 times as long as wide, base broadly cuneate, truncate, or weakly cordate, margins entire or indistinctly repand, flat, apex obtuse or broadly acute. |
blades linear-lanceolate or linear-oblanceolate, 5–10 × 1–3 cm, usually ca. (3–)5–7 times as long as wide, usually widest near middle, thin or, occasionally, subcoriaceous, base cuneate, margins entire, flat or, occasionally, undulate near base, apex acute or attenuate. |
Inflorescences | terminal, occupying distal 1/2 of stem, usually dense, narrowly paniculate. |
terminal and axillary, terminal usually occupying distal 1/5–1/3 of stem, lax, interrupted at least in proximal 1/2, usually broadly paniculate (branches simple or with few 2d-order branches). |
Pedicels | articulated in proximal 1/3, filiform, 6–16 mm, articulation indistinct. |
articulated in proximal 1/3 or almost near base, filiform, 3–8 mm, not more than 2–2.5 times as long as inner tepals, articulation indistinctly swollen. |
Flowers | 10–20 in whorls; inner tepals ovate-triangular or subcordate, 5–6 × 4.5–6 mm, widest at or near middle, base weakly emarginate, margins entire, erose, or indistinctly denticulate mostly at base, apex abruptly narrowed, acute or subacute; tubercles absent. |
10–15(–20) in whorls; inner tepals usually broadly triangular or deltoid, 2.5–3.5 × 2.2–3.3 mm, base truncate, margins minutely but distinctly denticulate, rarely subentire, apex obtuse or subacute; tubercles absent, or only 1 midvein slightly swollen. |
Achenes | deep brown to reddish brown, 2.5–4(–4.5) × 1.8–2.5 mm. |
brown or dark reddish brown, 2 × 1.3 mm. |
2n | = 120. |
= 20. |
Rumex densiflorus |
Rumex californicus |
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Phenology | Flowering late spring–early summer. | Flowering late spring–summer. |
Habitat | Along streams and rivers in montane, subalpine, and alpine zones | Moist coastal, alluvial, and montane habitats |
Elevation | 1500-3000(-3500) m (4900-9800(-11500) ft) | 0-3000 m (0-9800 ft) |
Distribution |
CO; NM; WY
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AZ; CA; NV; OR; possibly n Mexico
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Discussion | The following three species are closely related to Rumex densiflorus, all belonging to subsect. Densiflori Rechinger f., and possibly form one polymorphic “macrospecies” (K. H. Rechinger 1937). Á. Löve (1986) treated R. orthoneurus and R. pycnanthus as subspecies of R. densiflorus. However, the variability of this aggregate is insufficiently known, and I prefer to treat it as consisting of four “microspecies.” Rumex densiflorus is reported from northwestern New Mexico (W. C. Martin and C. R. Hutchins 1980), where it most probably occurs; records for southern Idaho (R. J. Davis 1952) and Arizona (J. H. Lehr 1978) need confirmation. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Rumex californicus is closely related to and often is regarded as a variety of R. salicifolius. In Oregon this species has been reported only as a ballast waif in the Albina neighborhood of Portland (K. H. Rechinger 1937). It has been reported also from northeastern Nevada (J. T. Kartesz 1987, vol. 1), New Mexico (W. C. Martin and C. R. Hutchins 1980), and Wyoming (N. M. Sarkar 1958), but these records require confirmation. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 5, p. 515. | FNA vol. 5, p. 509. |
Parent taxa | Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Rumex > subg. Rumex > sect. Rumex | Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Rumex > subg. Rumex > sect. Axillares |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | R. polyrrhizus | R. salicifolius var. denticulatus |
Name authority | Osterhout: Erythea 6: 13. (1898) | Rechinger f.: Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 40: 297. (1936) |
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