Eriogonum heracleoides

Last updated

Eriogonum heracleoides
Parsnipflower buckwheat imported from iNaturalist photo 87128896 on 12 March 2024.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Polygonaceae
Genus: Eriogonum
Species:
E. heracleoides
Binomial name
Eriogonum heracleoides

Eriogonum heracleoides (common names; parsnipflower buckwheat, whorled buckwheat, and Wyeth buckwheat [1] ) is a plant of western North America that has many flowering clusters which are usually cream colored, or off-white. It can usually be found in rocky areas, such as sagebrush deserts and Ponderosa pine forests. Parsnipflower buckwheat is in the genus Eriogonum and the family Polygonaceae, which is a family of plants known as the "knotweed family". It inhabits much of the western part of the United States and southern British Columbia. [2] [3]

Contents

Description

The parsnipflower buckwheat is an erect herbaceous perennial plant rarely more than 40 cm (15+34 in) tall. Blooming early in the summer, its flowers measure 4–9 mm (1838 in); these are pale yellow and redden with age. [4] The leaves are arranged in loose rosettes, covered with soft hairs measuring 5–30 mm (141+18 in). The hairs feel woolly and matted, and cover both sides of the leaf. [5] The flowers have one carpel (achene). The plant has a whorled arrangement of leaves at midpoint of the stem [6] [7] as well as one beneath the base of the stems. [4] It blooms in early to mid summer. It attracts butterflies, bees, insects, and birds and is the host plant for several Palouse butterflies. [8]

References

  1. United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service. "Parsnipflower buckwheat" (PDF). Plant Guide.
  2. Sullivan, Steven. K. (2020). "Eriogonum heracleoides". Wildflower Search. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  3. USDA, NRCS. (2020). "Eriogonum heracleoides". The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  4. 1 2 Taylor, Ronald J. (1994) [1992]. Sagebrush Country: A Wildflower Sanctuary (rev. ed.). Missoula, MT: Mountain Press Pub. Co. p. 28. ISBN   0-87842-280-3. OCLC   25708726.
  5. Floras Flora in North America. "Parsnipflower buckwheat".
  6. Klinkenberg, Brian, ed. (2020). "Eriogonum heracleoides". E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  7. Giblin, David, ed. (2020). "Eriogonum heracleoides". WTU Herbarium Image Collection. Burke Museum, University of Washington. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  8. Thorn Creek Thorn Creek Native Seed. "Wyeth buckwheat".

Further reading