Common name:
Tall woolly wild buckwheat
Family:
Scientific name:
Eriogonum elatum
Main flower color:
Range:
The Great Basin and states to the west
Height:
Up to 3 feet
Habitat:
Rocky, gravelly or sandy locations, between 2,000 and 10,000 feet
Leaves:
Oblong, up to 6 inches (occasionally more) long and 2 inches wide
Season:
May to October
As its common name implies, eriogonum elatum is a tall species, sometimes exceeding three feet. Stems may be hairy or hairless. Stems are not usually inflated below the branching nodes. The stalked leaves are also large, and broad, growing only at the base; they have a covering of short, soft, white hairs (especially underneath), and prominent white midveins.
Flowers are borne in compact, spherical clusters, at the tips of the branched inflorescence and to a lesser extent at the branching nodes. Individual flowers have six spreading, obovate white lobes, with a green stripe down the center, and nine white stamens, topped by reddish-pink anthers.
Var elatum has hairless stems and hairless flower stalks, while the less common var villosum is hairy.
Flowers are borne in compact, spherical clusters, at the tips of the branched inflorescence and to a lesser extent at the branching nodes. Individual flowers have six spreading, obovate white lobes, with a green stripe down the center, and nine white stamens, topped by reddish-pink anthers.
Var elatum has hairless stems and hairless flower stalks, while the less common var villosum is hairy.
All Contents © Copyright The American Southwest | Comments and Questions | Contribute | Site Map