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Arizona rosewood

Arizona rosewood

Habit Shrubs or trees, rounded to ovoid, 10–50(–80) dm, usually multistemmed.
Young stems

initially tomentulose, becoming canescent or tardily glabrate.

Leaves

petiole (4–)7–15(–26) mm;

blade bicolor, abaxially white, adaxially green and lustrous, lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate or narrowly elliptic, (3.5–)4–9(–15) × (0.7–)1–2(–3.2) cm, surfaces initially villous-tomentulose, abaxially usually sparsely white-puberulent, hairs slightly coiled, sometimes glabrate or glabrous, adaxially mostly glabrate or glabrous.

petiole (1.5–)4–16(–26) mm;

blade usually bicolor, sometimes green or yellow-green, oblong-elliptic or oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear, (2.2–)3–11(–15) × (0.6–)0.7–2(–3.2) cm, base obliquely cuneate to rounded, margins serrulate or crenulate, teeth 10–35(–50) per 5 cm, 0.1–0.5(–1.5) mm, apex acute, mostly mucronate, surfaces closely villous-tomentulose, abaxially more densely so, or glabrate or tardily glabrescent (some remaining crinkled hairs).

Flowers

hypanthium 2–2.5(–3) × 2–3.7(–4.5) mm, exterior tomentulose or tardily glabrate, interior glabrous;

sepals 1.4–2.1 × 1.5–2.3 mm, puberulent-villous;

petals 4–5 × 2.5–3.5 mm;

filaments 3–5.5 mm.

hypanthium 1.5–2.5(–3) × 2–3.7(–4.5) mm, tomentose to sparsely tomentulose or glabrate;

sepals 1.1–2.2 × 1.4–2.3 mm, margins eglandular;

petals oblong-ovate, 3.4–5.4 × 2.4–3.5 mm;

filaments 2.5–6 mm.

Capsules

5–6.5 × 3.5–4.5 mm.

4.5–6.5 × 3.5–4.5 mm.

Seeds

4–5 × 1.2–1.3 mm.

3.5–5 × 0.9–1.4 mm.

Corymbs

3–5(–12) × 3–8(–13) cm.

1.5–5(–12) × 1.7–8(–13) cm, tomentulose, sometimes sparsely hairy or glabrate.

2n

= 30.

Vauquelinia californica subsp. californica

Vauquelinia californica

Phenology Flowering spring.
Habitat Limestone and granite substrates, shrublands of upper Sonoran Desert from above desert plains to lower pinyon-juniper zones
Elevation 700–1800 m (2300–5900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; Mexico (Baja California, Baja California Sur)
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; NM; n Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies californica shows considerable variation among populations, particularly with regard to vestiture, leaf size and shape, petiole length, and number of marginal teeth. Often populations within the same mountain ranges in Arizona share the same pattern of variation. Most of the populations have distinctly bicolor leaves, at least when young, or abaxially become weakly puberulent and persistently, closely tomentulose to canescent with tightly coiled hairs.

The name Vauquelinia torreyi S. Watson, which is illegitimate, pertains here.

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

Subspecies 4 (3 in the flora).

Subspecies retherfordii (I. M. Johnston) W. J. Hess & Henrickson is known from Coahuila and Durango in northern Mexico.

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

Key
1. Leaves green or yellow-green, glabrate or puberulent along midveins.
subsp. pauciflora
1. Leaves bicolor, abaxially white-puberulent or villous-tomentulose (or tardily glabrescent in plants of c Arizona), adaxially green
→ 2
2. Leaf blades lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate or narrowly elliptic, (0.7–)1–2(–3.2) cm wide, usually abaxially sparsely white-puberulent, sometimes glabrate or glabrous.
subsp. californica
2. Leaf blades linear to linear-lanceolate, (0.6–)0.7–1.2(–1.4) cm wide, abaxially villous-tomentulose, soon or tardily glabrescent except for hairy midveins.
subsp. sonorensis
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 430. FNA vol. 9, p. 430.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Maleae > Vauquelinia > Vauquelinia californica Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Maleae > Vauquelinia
Sibling taxa
V. californica subsp. pauciflora, V. californica subsp. sonorensis
V. corymbosa
Subordinate taxa
V. californica subsp. californica, V. californica subsp. pauciflora, V. californica subsp. sonorensis
Synonyms Spiraea californica
Name authority unknown (Torrey) Sargent: Gard. & Forest 2: 400. (1889)
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