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Sidalcea asprella

dwarf checkerbloom, harsh checker mallow, harsh checkerbloom

white checkerbloom, white checkermallow

Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.1–1(–1.2) m, infrequently ± glaucous, with caudex or not, usually with freely-rooting fibrous rootstocks or rhizomes (5–)10–30 cm × 2–4 mm, matted or not. Herbs, perennial, 0.3–1 m, ± glaucous, with rhizomes wide-spreading, compact to elongate, 5 mm diam.
Stems

usually single, erect and sometimes supported by adjacent plants (sprawling), base prostrate or decumbent-ascending to erect, often rooting, solid, not brittle, sometimes ± glaucous distally, proximally stellate-hairy, glabrate, hairs minute or larger and coarse (never simple only), usually 4-rayed, 0.5–1 mm.

single, clustered in older plants, erect, sometimes branched distally, solid, glabrous or moderately hirsute, hairs retrorse, simple proximally, becoming ± finely stellate-hairy distally.

Leaves

basal and/or cauline, similar in size and shape;

stipules linear to lanceolate, 2–3 × 1.1 mm;

petiole (1–)5–10(–15) cm, longest on proximal leaves, 1–4 times longer on proximal leaves to 1/2 times to as long as blade on distal leaves;

blade usually shallowly to deeply palmately 3–7-lobed usually halfway to base, proximal and distal cauline blades rounded to reniform, 2–3 × 2–5 cm, usually wider than long, base cordate to truncate, margins crenate, apex blunt or rounded, lobes narrowest at base, margins usually apically coarsely toothed, rarely entire, surfaces stellate-puberulent.

basal and mostly cauline, not evenly arrayed;

stipules deciduous, ovate, 10 × 2–2.5 mm;

petiole (4–)6–18 cm, usually 1/2 times to as long as blade;

petals often not overlapping, white to pale pinkish, drying yellowish, 10–20 mm;

staminal column 6–9 mm, hairy;

anthers bluish pink;

stigmas 6–9.

Inflorescences

ascending or erect, often spiciform, open, calyces not overlapping in flower or fruit, unbranched or branched, 2–15(–30)-flowered, elongate in both flower and fruit, usually 1-sided, 6–11(–30) cm;

bracts leaflike to linear, usually 2-fid, (2–)3–5(–15) mm.

Pedicels

2–5(–10) mm;

involucellar bractlets absent.

Flowers

bisexual or unisexual and pistillate, plants gynodioecious;

calyx 5–12 mm, uniformly densely stellate-puberulent;

petals pink to pale purple, pale-veined, (5–)10–28 mm, pistillate flowers darker, 5–15 mm;

staminal column 4–5 mm, stellate-puberulent;

anthers white;

stigmas (6 or)7 or 8.

Seeds

1.5–2.8 mm.

2 mm.

Schizocarps

6–8 mm diam.;

mericarps (6 or)7 or 8, 3–4 mm, usually glandular-puberulent to stellate-puberulent, sometimes glabrous, roughened, strongly reticulate-veined, sides and back pitted, mucro 0.5–1 mm.

5–7 mm diam.;

mericarps 6–9, 3–5.5 mm, sides smooth or slightly reticulate-veined, back less so, not pitted, top minutely hairy, mucro 0.5–0.8 mm.

2n

= 20.

Sidalcea asprella

Sidalcea candida

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug(–Sep).
Habitat Moist stream banks and meadows, mountains
Elevation (1400–)2000–3200 m [(4600–)6600–10500 ft]
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; NM; NV; UT; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

Sidalcea asprella is variable and occurs from the central Sierra Nevada to southwestern Oregon. Typical plants in the central Sierra Nevada have weak, elongated stems that are often supported by neighboring vegetation; they lack simple recurved hairs at the stem base and may have either elongated rhizomes or a caudex. It has been confused with S. celata, S. elegans, S. gigantea, and S. glaucescens; formerly it was included within S. malviflora; molecular study has shown that it is different from S. malviflora. It belongs to a group including S. celata, S. elegans, S. gigantea, and S. hirtipes (K. Andreasen and B. G. Baldwin 2003).

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

Sidalcea candida is one of the more eastern species of Sidalcea (along with S. neomexicana) and is also one of the more easily distinguished because of its relatively large, crowded flowers with white petals, deep, wide-spreading rhizomes, pinkish-blue anthers, and nearly glabrous stems and leaves. It has become a popular garden plant. Hitchcock recognized two varieties based on calyx indument, var. candida with the calyx uniformly hairy, and var. glabrata with the calyx much more hairy at the base than on the lobes. Cockerell distinguished plants with somewhat pink petals as var. tincta. These differences do not appear to be taxonomically significant, and the varieties lack geographic coherence.

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

Key
1. Plants (0.3–)0.5–1(–1.2) m, with caudex or usually compact rootstocks or rhizomes to 10(–30) cm × 4 mm; leaves mostly cauline; inflorescences 8–15 (–30)-flowered, erect; stems erect, sometimes weak and supported by other vegetation, sometimes proximally decumbent.
subsp. asprella
1. Plants 0.1–0.3(–0.4) m, with rhizomes 5–20 cm × 2(–3) mm; leaves mostly basal; inflorescences usually 2–10(–19)-flowered, ascending; stems decumbent-ascending to erect, sometimes proximally prostrate.
subsp. nana
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 325. Treatment author: Steven R. Hill. FNA vol. 6, p. 328. Treatment author: Steven R. Hill.
Parent taxa Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea
Sibling taxa
S. calycosa, S. campestris, S. candida, S. celata, S. covillei, S. cusickii, S. diploscypha, S. elegans, S. gigantea, S. glaucescens, S. hartwegii, S. hendersonii, S. hickmanii, S. hirsuta, S. hirtipes, S. keckii, S. malachroides, S. malviflora, S. multifida, S. nelsoniana, S. neomexicana, S. oregana, S. pedata, S. ranunculacea, S. reptans, S. robusta, S. setosa, S. sparsifolia, S. stipularis, S. virgata
S. asprella, S. calycosa, S. campestris, S. celata, S. covillei, S. cusickii, S. diploscypha, S. elegans, S. gigantea, S. glaucescens, S. hartwegii, S. hendersonii, S. hickmanii, S. hirsuta, S. hirtipes, S. keckii, S. malachroides, S. malviflora, S. multifida, S. nelsoniana, S. neomexicana, S. oregana, S. pedata, S. ranunculacea, S. reptans, S. robusta, S. setosa, S. sparsifolia, S. stipularis, S. virgata
Subordinate taxa
S. asprella subsp. asprella, S. asprella subsp. nana
Synonyms S. malviflora subsp. asprella S. candida var. glabrata, S. candida var. tincta
Name authority Greene: Bull. Calif. Acad. Sci. 1: 78. (1885) A. Gray: Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts, n. s. 4: 24. (1849)
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