Sidalcea neomexicana |
Sidalcea covillei |
|
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mountain sidalcea, New Mexico checkerbloom, New Mexico checkermallow, New Mexico or salt-spring checkerbloom, Rocky Mountain checkerbloom, salt spring checkerbloom |
Owens Valley checkerbloom, Owens Valley sidalcea |
|
Habit | Herbs, perennial, 0.2–0.8(–1.2) m, glaucous or not, with thick, fleshy, tuberous or fibrous taproot and other roots clustered, fleshy, without caudex and rhizomes. | Herbs, perennial, 0.2–0.6 m, often glaucous, with fleshy, simple to clustered roots, without caudex or rhizomes. |
Stems | 1–several, clustered, erect or ascending from slightly decumbent base, unbranched or branched, solid, infrequently hollow in robust plants, sometimes glaucous, proximally usually coarsely, densely to moderately bristly-hirsute, hairs often pustulose to sparsely stellate-hairy, sometimes glabrous, distally usually minutely puberulent or glabrous. |
several, clustered, erect, solid, often glaucous proximally, base sparsely, finely to coarsely stellate-hairy or hispid, hairs smaller distally. |
Leaves | basal and cauline, cauline 3+; stipules linear to wide-lanceolate, 4–8 × 1–2 mm; petioles of proximalmost leaves 10–25 cm, reduced distally to shorter than blade, to 5 times blade length; blade fleshy, margins often short-ciliate, surfaces sparsely hairy, less so adaxially, hairs simple-hirsute to stellate, appressed, basal orbiculate, unlobed, margins crenate, or shallowly 5–7(–9)-lobed, (1.5–) 2–6(–8) × (1.5–)2–6(–8) cm, base cordate, apex rounded, lobes with margins crenate to dentate, apex acute, distal cauline highly reduced or not, deeply, palmately (3–)5–7(–9)-lobed, smaller, ultimate divisions linear, margins entire. |
2–5 per stem, mostly basal; stipules linear-lanceolate, 3–6 × 1 mm; petiole (4–)5–10 cm, reduced on cauline leaves, proximal 1–4 times as long as blade, distal 1/2 times to as long as blade; blade fleshy, glaucous, rather densely stellate-hairy, proximalmost usually shallowly to deeply, ternately, palmately 5–7-lobed, 1.5–3 × 1.5–4 cm, lobes obovate, margins crenate-dentate, distal deeply 3–7-lobed, lobes linear, distalmost 2–4 cm wide. |
Inflorescences | erect to ascending, open or dense, calyces not conspicuously overlapping except sometimes in bud, unbranched or branched, 20+-flowered, proximal flowers spaced 1+ cm apart, elongate, sometimes 1-sided, 10–25 cm, elongating in fruit; bracts linear to lanceolate, undivided or deeply 2-fid, 4–10 mm, usually equaling or longer than pedicels. |
erect, open, calyces not conspicuously overlapping except sometimes in bud, branched or unbranched, nearly scapose, often 20+-flowered, slender, elongate, 1-sided or not, 6–30 cm; bracts inconspicuous, linear, 2-fid, 2–4 mm, shorter than calyx and pedicels. |
Pedicels | 5–8(–40) mm, equaling to much longer than calyx in fruit; involucellar bractlets absent. |
2–8(–10) mm; involucellar bractlets absent. |
Flowers | bisexual or, less frequently, unisexual and pistillate, plants gynodioecious; calyx 5–8(–10) mm, often accrescent, sparsely hairy, hairs simple, to 1 mm, pustulose, sometimes small, stellate, infrequently glandular, surface not obscured; petals pale pinkish rose or pale lavender-purple, bases paler, rarely white, veins usually pale, (6–)10–20(–25) mm, pistillate 8–12 mm, bisexual 18–20 mm; staminal column 5–6 mm, hispid-puberulent; anthers white; stigmas (7 or)8 or 9. |
bisexual; calyx 5–8 mm, uniformly, densely stellate-puberulent or few with longer rays; petals pale pink-lavender, veins paler, 10–15 mm; staminal column 4–5 mm, hairy; anthers white; stigmas 5 or 6. |
Seeds | 1.5 mm. |
1 mm. |
Schizocarps | 5 mm diam.; mericarps (7 or)8 or 9, 2–3 mm, ± glabrous, sides thin, smooth to slightly reticulate-veined, not pitted, mucro 0.5–0.8(–1) mm. |
5 mm diam.; mericarps 5 or 6, 2.5 mm, sparsely glandular-puberulent, roughened, back reticulate-veined, sides strongly so, not pitted, mucro 0.1–0.3 mm. |
2n | = 20. |
= 20. |
Sidalcea neomexicana |
Sidalcea covillei |
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Phenology | Flowering (Mar–)Apr–Aug. | Flowering (Apr–)May–Jun. |
Habitat | Desert alkaline springs, moist mountain meadows, wet ditches, marshes | Alkaline flats, springs, meadows |
Elevation | 10–2800 m (0–9200 ft) | 1100–1400 m (3600–4600 ft) |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CO; ID; NM; NV; OR; TX; UT; WY; Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango)
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CA |
Discussion | Sidalcea neomexicana is variable among and within populations. It is similar to S. covillei and S. sparsifolia, the former possibly derived from it. Sidalcea neomexicana usually can be distinguished by its fleshy roots; hirsute stems; slender pedicels (especially in fruit); pustulate, coarse calyx hairs; and relatively smooth mericarp surfaces. Some plants (in California and Mexico) are well adapted to hot desert springs; overall, S. neomexicana appears to have roots and a rootstock adapted to marshy conditions. It ranges farther south than any other Sidalcea. E. M. F. Roush (1931) recognized no subspecific taxa; C. L. Hitchcock (1957) accepted four geographically and morphologically defined subspecies, three of which (crenulata, neomexicana, thurberi) occur north of Mexico. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Sidalcea covillei is one of two species of Sidalcea (along with S. neomexicana) with fleshy roots and adapted to alkaline conditions on flats. Its range (Owens Valley in Inyo County) and specialized habitat have made it vulnerable to any lowering of the water table and to grazing; it is listed as endangered in California. Most individuals of it were destroyed by construction of the Haiwee Reservoir. Once thought to have been extirpated, it was subsequently rediscovered. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 6, p. 346. | FNA vol. 6, p. 329. |
Parent taxa | Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea | Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. confinis, S. crenulata, S. neomexicana subsp. crenulata, S. neomexicana subsp. diehlii, S. neomexicana var. diehlii, S. neomexicana var. parviflora, S. neomexicana subsp. thurberi, S. nitrophila, S. parviflora, S. parviflora var. thurberi | S. neomexicana var. covillei |
Name authority | A. Gray: Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts, n. s. 4: 23. (1849) | Greene: Cybele Columb. 1: 35. (1914) |
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