Lewisia

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Lewisia
Lewisia cotyledon Sunset Strain 7zz.jpg
Lewisia cotyledon 'Sunset Strain'
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Montiaceae
Genus: Lewisia
Pursh
Species

see text

Lewisia is a plant genus, named for the American explorer Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809) who encountered the species in 1806. The native habitat of Lewisia species is rocky ground and cliffs in western North America. Native Americans ate the roots, which have also been used to treat sore throats.

Contents

Characteristics

Lewisia fellas are succulent perennial ring plants native to western North American habitats including rocky outcrops from the high elevation alpine to lower elevation chaparral, oak woodlands, and coniferous forests. They produce rosette-shaped flowers in a range of different colours. [1] Lewisia cotyledon grow up to 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) in height and width. [2]

About half of the species of Lewisia are deciduous, including the original Lewisia rediviva . Lewisia longipetala is the only semi-deciduous species. Some species, such as Lewisia cotyledon, are evergreen. [3]

Taxonomy

Meriwether Lewis, of Lewis and Clark fame, is credited with the first discovery by a European or American of Lewisia, which was known to the local Native Americans as bitterroot. Lewis discovered the specimen in 1806 at Lolo Creek, in the mountain range that became known as the Bitterroot Mountains. [4] The plant was given its scientific name, Lewisia rediviva, by Frederick Traugott Pursh. [5]

List of species

There are nineteen species and several varieties of Lewisia, including: [6]

Lewisia cotyledon Lewisia c.jpg
Lewisia cotyledon
Lewisia rediviva Lewisia rediviva 4.jpg
Lewisia rediviva

Formerly placed here

Distribution and habitat

Lewisias are naturally found in western parts of North America. In their native habitat of north-facing cliffs, lewisias are subject to extremes in weather conditions. [10]

Uses

All species of Lewisia are edible. Lewisia rediviva has a large edible root and as a result became a food source for Native Americans. [11] The root is peeled before boiling or steaming; cooking the root reduces its bitterness. [12]

L. rediviva has also been used for medicinal purposes; chewing the root was used to relieve a sore throat and has also been used to promote milk flow during lactation. [13]

For gardening, Lewisia species are usually planted in rockeries, because this mimics their natural habitat. Rockeries also provide the free drainage that lewisias need to prevent their roots rotting. [14] They may also be planted in pots, though they need to be well drained and protected from sustained wet weather. [15]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Ericameria nauseosa</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Cirsium cymosum</i> Species of thistle

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<i>Lewisia kelloggii</i> Species of flowering plant

Lewisia kelloggii is a species of flowering plant in the family Montiaceae known by the common name Kellogg's lewisia. It is endemic to the Sierra Nevada of California, where it is known from several sites high in the mountains. It grows in rocky mountain habitat in granite and slate substrates. This is a perennial herb growing from a thick, short taproot and caudex unit. It produces a basal rosette of many thick, leathery, spoon-shaped leaves up to 9 centimeters long. The inflorescence bears several flowers, each on a very short stalk. The flower has 5 to 13 shiny white or pinkish petals just over a centimeter long. Under the petals are two sepals and two similar bracts lined with spherical resin glands.

<i>Lewisia leeana</i> Species of flowering plant

Lewisia leeana is a species of flowering plant in the family Montiaceae known by the common name quill-leaf lewisia. It is native to California and Oregon, where it grows in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada and Klamath Ranges. This is a perennial herb growing from narrow, woody taproot connected to one or more caudices. It produces a basal rosette of many fleshy flat to cylindrical blunt-tipped leaves up to 4 centimeters long. The inflorescence bears many flowers on erect, branching stems up to about 24 centimeters tall. Each flower has 5 to 8 white, pink, or purplish petals each about half a centimeter long.

<i>Erocallis</i> Species of flowering plant

Erocallis triphylla is a species of flowering plant in the family Montiaceae known by the common name threeleaf lewisia. It is the sole species in genus Erocallis.

<i>Dieteria canescens</i> Species of flowering plant

Dieteria canescens is an annual plant or short lived perennial plant in the family Asteraceae, known by the common names hoary tansyaster and hoary-aster.

<i>Sabulina nuttallii</i> Species of flowering plant

Sabulina nuttallii is a species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae known by the common names Nuttall's sandwort and brittle sandwort.

<i>Cirsium eatonii</i> Species of thistle

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<i>Brickellia microphylla</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Brickellia oblongifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Brickellia oblongifolia, the Mojave brickellbush, is North American species of plants in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread across arid and semi-arid regions in the western United States and Canada, from British Columbia south to southern California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

<i>Heterotheca villosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Heterotheca villosa, commonly known as the hairy goldenaster, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae found in central and western North America.

<i>Astragalus miser</i> Species of plant

Astragalus miser, the timber milkvetch, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. A perennial, it is native to western North America, except California. One of the locoweeds toxic to livestock, it contains miserotoxin.

References

Notes

  1. Clayton & Drury 2012 , p. 36
  2. "Lewisia cotyledon AGM". Royal Horticultural Society. 2011. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  3. "- Lewisias". Alpine Garden Society - Bedfordshire group. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  4. Charles Lyte. "In focus: Lewisia". The Telegraph. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  5. "Bitterroot Plant Trivia". Bitterroot Heaven. 2007. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  6. Unless otherwise sourced all items in this list use: "Classification for Kingdom Plantae Down to Genus Lewisia Pursh". United States Department of Agriculture . Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  7. Edna Ray-Vizgirda (13 October 2012). "Sacajawea's bitterroot (Lewisia sacajaweana)". United States Forest Service. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  8. "Lewisia ×whiteae Purdy [cotyledon × leeana]". United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  9. Lewisia triphylla (S.Watson) B.L.Rob. Plants of the World Online . Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  10. Clayton & Drury 2012 , p. 36
  11. Vizgirdas & Rey-Vizgirdas 2009 , p. 153
  12. Vizgirdas & Rey-Vizgirdas 2009 , p. 154
  13. "Bitterroot - Lewisia rediviva Pursh". Plant-life. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  14. Clayton & Drury 2012 , p. 36
  15. Clayton & Drury 2012 , p. 36

Bibliography