Penstemon albidus

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Penstemon albidus
Plants OB 919 (37994562095).jpg
Status TNC G5.svg
Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Penstemon
Species:
P. albidus
Binomial name
Penstemon albidus
Synonyms [2]

Penstemon albidus, commonly known as white penstemon, [3] white-flower beardtongue, [4] or Red-Line Beardtongue [5] is a very widespread perennial flower of the mixed-grass and shortgrass prairies. [4] Its natural distribution is from Manitoba and Alberta in Canada to Texas and New Mexico in the United States. [6] The bright white flowers for which they are named are quite attractive to both bees [7] and hummingbird moths. [8] [9]

Contents

Description

Penstemon albidus in flower, Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan, Canada Penstemon albidus GNP 03.jpg
Penstemon albidus in flower, Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan, Canada

Penstemon albidus is a long lived herbaceous plant that most often blooms sometime from April to June. [8] The flowering stems are 8–60 cm in height, but more typically 15–50 cm [10] and stand upright with only a slight curve at the base. [4] The stems are covered in extremely fine and short hairs that increase to being glandular and hairy closer to the buds and flowers. [3] [10] Plants can have multiple flowering stems or just one. [9]

The basal leaves are attached with short stems to the base of the plant and vary in shape from lanceolate to obovate. They are usually 20–90 mm long and 7–20 mm wide, though occasionally they will be as long as 110 mm or as narrow as 4 mm. [3] The leaves have various textures, from smooth to quite rough with short tough hairs (scabrous), [3] but are not leathery. [4] The leaf edges also vary from plant to plant from smooth, through slightly serrate, to distinctly serrate. [4] The 2–6 leaves on the flowering stems are similar in shape to the basal leaves and grow as opposite pairs. They tend to be shorter (25–65 mm long and 3–21 mm wide) and clasp the flowering stem instead of growing on short leaf stems, especially on the upper leaves of the flowering stem. [4] The leaves and flowering stems grow from a short, branched, persistent stem called a caudex. Underground Penstemon albidus has a taproot with fibrous lateral roots. When top parts of the plant are damaged it activates regrowth shoots from the crown. [11] : 117 

The inflorescence is a thyrse with flowers blooming in succession from bottom to top as it grows, the portion with flowers being 4–25 cm long and occasionally as long as 30 cm. [3] The stems have a cylindrical cross section and are densely glandular-pubescent. [4] There will be 2–10 groups of flowers on short stems attaching to the main stem (verticillasters). [4] Close examination will show that each group on the stem is subdivided into a pair of attachment points with each having 2–7 flowers. [10] The bracts close to each flowering group are pointed and narrow (lanceolate) 17–65 mm long and 3–17 mm wide. The short pedicels supporting each flower are also densely glandular and hairy as is the flowering stem (peduncles). [4]

Flowers of Penstemon albidus showing hairy glandular stems and sepals Penstemon albidus (4015284069).jpg
Flowers of Penstemon albidus showing hairy glandular stems and sepals

The flowers of Penstemon albidus have sepals (calyx lobes) that are 4–7 mm long, 1.5–3 mm wide, pointed, and also covered in glandular hairs. [10] [4] The flower is white, occasionally tinged with a delicate shades of lavender, blue, or pink, [10] possibly due to crossbreeding with other species. [8] The flowers often have nectar guides extending from the mouth of the flowers down the lower interior of the flower tube toward the back that are red or magenta, often quite dark in contrast with the rest of the flower. [10] [8] The overall shape of the flower is a funnel 12–20 mm in length and 6–8 mm in diameter. [4] The tube of the flower is not constricted at the opening and 4–6 mm long and 6–8 mm in diameter. Internally it is also glandular pubescent. [10] In the sunlight the edges of its flowers will glisten slightly due the numerous hairs. [12] P. albidus tends to have larger flowers in the north of its range than in the south of its range. [13]

The stamens are kept within the flower tube and have black flattened and spread out anther sacs. [10] Each pollen sac is 0.1–1.1 mm in size and opens completely. [4] The staminode is 8–9 mm long, but does not extend beyond the throat of the flower, and is sparsely to moderately covered in shaggy yellow hairs 1 mm long the end approaching the flower's mouth. [10] The staminode can be either straight or recurved. The style is generally 9–11 mm in length, but occasionally is as long as 13 mm. [4]

Depending on altitude and weather conditions flowering will occur for 16 to 42 days starting in April to the end of July and rarely as late as September. [4] [11] : 121  [14] The botanist Francis Pennell noted that the flowers are very fragrant at dusk when being visited by moths. [15]

The seed capsules are small drop shapes about 8–12 mm long and 4–7 mm in diameter. [4] The seeds are black to dark brown in color and 2–3 mm in size. [16]

Taxonomy

Penstemon albidus from An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions, 1913 Illustration Penstemon albidus 1913.tif
Penstemon albidus from An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions, 1913

The type specimen of Penstemon albidus was collected in 1811 by Thomas Nuttall, "On the plains of the Missouri [River], common, from the confluence of the river Platte to the Mountains". It was described and named by him as Pentstemon albidum, using the mistaken Linnaean correction of John Mitchell's Penstemon and albidus from the Latin meaning 'somewhat white'. [10] [17] During the botanist John Fraser's 1807 trip to the United States he collected specimens and seeds for a plant he called Penstemon teretiflorus. This was listed in Catalogue of New and Interesting Plants Collected in Upper Louisiana, a book generally accepted as being written by Nuttall and published in 1813. However, it is accepted that this was in fact P. albidus more correctly described by Nuttall in 1817. [18] [19]

Up until the year 1828 plants in Penstemon were sometimes classified as Chelone , as Kurt Sprengel did in 1825 when he described Penstemon albidus as Chelone albida in Systema Vegetabilium. [2] The German botanist Christian Nees von Esenbeck described it as Penstemon viscidulus in 1821 [20] and this later identification was not definitively resolved until David D. Keck published his paper Studies in Penstemon VI in 1938. [21] [22]

Table of Synonyms
NameYearNotes
Chelone albida(Nutt.) Spreng.1825≡ hom.
Penstemon teretiflorusFraser ex Nutt.1818= het.
Penstemon viscidulusNees1821= het.
Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym  ; = heterotypic synonym

The chromosome number for Penstemon albidus is 16 in diploid individuals. [8]

Habitat and Distribution

Penstemon albidus is commonly found growing in silty, sandy loam, or gravelly soils. [15] and they can be found grow from 300 to 1800 m in elevation. [4] Its main habitat is open, dry prairies, but it also grows in juniper savannas in Colorado. [10]

Penstemon albidus is one of the widely distributed members of its genus, being native almost the entirety in the western great plains of North America. [13] : 226  In the south it grows in north of West Texas and the Texas Panhandle. They also grow in the northeast of New Mexico and the west of Oklahoma and its panhandle. The range continues north into the western half of Kansas and the eastern plains of Colorado. The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS database (PLANTS) likewise records it throughout most of Nebraska and three of the westernmost counties of Iowa. [6] White penstemons grow in the western third of Wyoming and almost all of Montana including valleys in the foothills of its mountains. [9] It grows throughout North Dakota, much of South Dakota, and the western counties of Minnesota. In Canada its natural range is restricted to the southern portions of Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, [6] with the reported occurrences in Ontario suspected by Flora of North America to be introduced. [4]

Conservation

In 2016 NatureServe evaluated Penstemon albidus was evaluated as globally secure (G5), meaning it has no major threats and is widespread and abundant. At the state and provincial level they also found it to be secure (S5) in the state of Kansas. It was deemed to be apparently secure (S4) in Montana, Saskatchewan, and Wyoming. It was given the status of vulnerable (S3) in Alberta and Manitoba and was more threatened in Iowa where it is imperiled (S2). They have not evaluated the rest of its range at the state level. [1]

Ecology

The above ground growth of P. albidus is rarely eaten by grazing livestock. [11] : 117  It increases in population in areas with grazing compared to nongrazed land, with the greatest increase when areas are grazed intensively twice a season rather than being constantly grazed. [11] : 121  It is not competitive with other plants in the dry prairies and does not form clumps or invade new areas. Generally they are restricted to relatively virgin prairie areas that have not been plowed or mowed and are difficult to reestablish once removed from a landscape. [23] P. albidus also only rarely makes up part of the diet of grasshoppers, with only Melanoplus confusus and Melanoplus foedus recorded as feeding on it 3% and 1% of the time respectively. [24] It is a common flower in its range, but does not form uniform stands or typically make up the majority of the plants in an area. [10]

Cultivation

White penstemons are durable and long-lived in garden conditions, giving a good show of flowers early in the summer, however the leaves are not noticeable or showy. [12] Indeed, it was one of the first penstemon seeds offered for sale in Europe by John Fraser in 1813, though it is not much grown there in the 21st century. [25] In garden settings they are adapted to full sun [16] and neutral to somewhat alkaline soils. They are adapted to sandy loam, sand, or gravelly soils and require either largely dry soils or very well drained conditions. [16]

Seed for cultivation are collected in April–July when they have darkened in color. Their seeds require cold and moist stratification of eight weeks to sprout or to be planted outside over the winter. [16] [12] The coldest USDA hardiness zones where this plant is known to survive is zone 3. [5]

See also

List of Penstemon species

Related Research Articles

<i>Penstemon digitalis</i> Central North American species of penstemon

Penstemon digitalis is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, Plantaginaceae. The flowers are white and are borne in summer. According to Francis W. Pennell it is a native of the Mississippi basin and its occurances in Canada and the eastern United states are introductions. Because of this Penstemon digitalis is the most widespread species of Penstemon east of the Mississippi River.

<i>Penstemon barnebyi</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon barnebyi is a species of penstemon known by the common names White River Valley beardtongue and Barneby's beardtongue. It is native to the mountain and basin territory of central western Nevada, where it grows in sagebrush and woodland; there is also one occurrence just over the California border.

<i>Penstemon clevelandii</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon clevelandii is a species of penstemon known by the common name Cleveland penstemon. It is native to southern California and Baja California, where it grows in mountain and desert habitat such as scrub, woodland, and chaparral.

<i>Penstemon floridus</i> Plant species in the veronica family

Penstemon floridus is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names Panamint penstemon and rose penstemon.

<i>Penstemon grandiflorus</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae

Penstemon grandiflorus, known by the common names shell-leaved penstemon, shell-leaf beardtongue, or large-flowered penstemon, is a tall and showy plant in the Penstemon genus from the plains of North America. Due to its large flowers it has found a place in gardens, particularly ones aimed at low water usage like xeriscape gardens.

<i>Penstemon canescens</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon canescens is a species of penstemon in the family Plantaginaceae. P. canescens is known by the common names gray beardtongue or Appalachian beardtongue. It is native to woodlands, forest edges, and roadsides of the southeastern United States and flowers May through July. It is a perennial herb producing stems reaching 80 centimeters in maximum height.

<i>Penstemon angustifolius</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon angustifolius is a perennial semi-evergreen forb belonging to the plantain family. This species is 1 out of roughly 273 species of Penstemon. This species is also known as broadbeard beardtongue. This forb is native to central United States and can be noticed by its brightly and highly variable colored flowers.

<i>Penstemon cyaneus</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon cyaneus is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names blue penstemon and dark blue penstemon. It is native to the western United States, where it is widespread in Idaho and also found in parts of Montana and Wyoming.

<i>Penstemon cobaea</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon cobaea is a flowering plant in the plantain family, commonly known as Cobaea beardtongue, prairie penstemon or foxglove penstemon. The plant is native to the central United States, primarily the Great Plains from Nebraska to Texas, with additional populations in the Ozarks of Missouri and Arkansas. There are also populations reported in the southwestern United States as well as in Illinois and Ohio, but these appear to be introductions.

<i>Penstemon brevisepalus</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon brevisepalus, commonly known as short-sepaled beardtongue, is an herbaceous plant in the plantain family. It is a perennial that produces pale lavender flowers in late spring.

<i>Penstemon australis</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon australis is a perennial plant native to the southeastern United States, with the common name Eustis Lake penstemon.

<i>Penstemon whippleanus</i> Species of flowering plant

Penstemon whippleanus, commonly known as dusky penstemon, dusky beardtongue, Whipple's penstemon, or Whipple's beardtongue, is a summer blooming perennial flower in the large Penstemon genus. It is a widespread plant within the hemiboreal forests of the Rocky Mountains in North America. It is noted for the large deep purple-red flowers and a preference for high mountain elevations.

<i>Penstemon virens</i> Species of flowering plant

Penstemon virens, commonly known as blue mist penstemon, Front Range penstemon, or Green beardtongue, is a common Penstemon in the Front Range foothills in Colorado and Wyoming. The dainty flowers are an ornament to many rocky or sandy area within its range. It is confusingly similar to Penstemon humilis and Penstemon albertinus though the ranges of these plants do not overlap in the wild. The origin of calling it the "blue mist penstemon" is not precisely known, but is thought to relate to the large number of blue flowers the plant can produce reminding observers of a blue mist.

<i>Penstemon secundiflorus</i> Species of flowering plant

Penstemon secundiflorus, commonly known as sidebells penstemon, or orchid beardtoungue is a species of Penstemon that grows in dry forests, high plains, and scrub lands from Wyoming to Mexico. It is a herbaceous perennial plant that typically grows to a height of 20 to 50 cm and has narrow, lance-shaped leaves that are grayish-green in color. The flowers of the sidebells penstemon are tubular in shape and are arranged in a one-sided spike, with the blooms all facing the same direction, and for this reason was named "secundiflorus", which means "one-sided flowers". The flowers are most often delicate shades of orchid or lavender. It is sometimes used in xeriscaping, rock gardens, and wildflower meadows, and is well-suited to dry, sunny locations with well-draining soil.

<i>Penstemon ambiguus</i> Species of flowering plant

Penstemon ambiguus, commonly known as the bush penstemon, pink plains penstemon, or gilia beardtongue is a species of Penstemon that grows in the shortgrass prairies and deserts of the western United States and northern Mexico. This bush-like penstemon grows in sandy, loose, and creosote soils and is particularly known for the spectacular flowering show it produces, sometime seasons turning whole hillsides bright pink–white.

<i>Penstemon auriberbis</i> Species of flowering plant

Penstemon auriberbis, commonly known as the Colorado penstemon or Colorado beardtongue, is a species of Penstemon that grows in the shortgrass prairies of southern Colorado and in a few places in northern New Mexico. Although specimens were collected on the 1820 expedition by Stephen H. Long through the area, they were not scientifically described as a separate species until 1920.

<i>Penstemon caespitosus</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon caespitosus, commonly known as mat penstemon, is a summer blooming perennial flower in the large Penstemon genus. It is a widespread plant from near timberline to the foothills in the Southern Rocky Mountains and Colorado Plateau in North America. It is noted for its ground hugging growth habit and as a plant used in xeriscape and rock gardening.

<i>Penstemon arenicola</i> Plant species in the family

Penstemon arenicola, commonly known as Red Desert penstemon, is a species of plant from the Western United States. It primarily grows in Wyoming, but it also grows in small areas of Colorado and Utah. It is a short plant known for growing in sand as referenced by its scientific name.

<i>Penstemon albifluvis</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon albifluvis, the White River penstemon, is a disputed species or variety of Penstemon that grows in a small area in eastern Utah and western Colorado. It grows mainly on broken shale and rock formations in desert habitats. White River penstemon is very rare.

<i>Penstemon ophianthus</i> Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon ophianthus, the coiled anther penstemon, is a species of small perennial plant in the plantain family. It has very noticeable dark violet lines on its flowers over a lighter blue-lavender color. The species grows in the plateaus and canyon lands of western Colorado and New Mexico, northern Arizona, and southern Utah.

References

  1. 1 2 NatureServe (2024). "Penstemon albidus". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  2. 1 2 POWO (2023). "Penstemon albidus Nutt". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Ackerfield, Jennifer (2015). Flora of Colorado (First ed.). Fort Worth, Texas: Botanical Research Institute of Texas Press. p. 588. ISBN   9781889878454.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Freeman, Craig C. "Penstemon albidus Nuttall - FNA". Flora of North America. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Penstemon albidus". Navigate.BotanicGardens.org. Denver Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 NRCS (2023). "Penstemon albidus Nutt.". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  7. ↑ Ratz, David. "White-flower Beardtongue — Penstemon albidus". Montana Field Guide. Montana Natural Heritage Program. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Penstemon albidus". Wolfe Lab. Ohio State University. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 Denver Botanic Gardens (2018). Wildflowers of the Rocky Mountain region. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press. p. 264. ISBN   9781604696448.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Barnett, Don (2022). Penstemon of southeastern Colorado (1st ed.). Pueblo, CO.: Ethical Dessert. pp. 48–53. ISBN   9780578373973.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Manske, Llewellyn L. "Autecology of White Beardtongue on the Northern Mixed Grass Prairie" (PDF) (Report). North Dakota State University Dickinson Research Extension Center. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  12. 1 2 3 Lindgren, Dale T. (2003). Growing penstemons : species, cultivars, and hybrids. Haverford, PA: Infinity Pub. pp. 16–17. ISBN   0741415291.
  13. 1 2 Rodriguez-Peña, Rosa A.; Wolfe, Andrea D. (5 December 2022). "Flower morphology variation in five species of Penstemon (Plantaginaceae) displaying Hymenoptera pollination syndrome". Botanical Sciences. 101 (1): 217–232. doi: 10.17129/botsci.3084 . hdl: 11250/3112427 .
  14. ↑ Hewitt, George B. (July 1980). "Plant Phenology as a Guide in Timing Grasshopper Control Efforts on Montana Rangeland" (PDF). Journal of Range Management. 33 (4): 298. doi:10.2307/3898078. JSTOR   3898078 . Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  15. 1 2 Nold, Robert (1999). Penstemons (1st ed.). Portland, Or.: Timber Press. p. 97. ISBN   0881924296.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Reese, R. (3 November 2016). "Penstemon albidus". South Dakota Native Plant Research. South Dakota State University. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  17. ↑ Nuttall, Thomas (1818). The genera of North American plants, and a catalogue of the species, to the year 1817. Philadelphia, USA: Printed for the author by D. Heartt. p. 53. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  18. ↑ Bennett, Ralph W. (1987). Penstemon Nomenclature (2nd ed.). Eugene, Oregon: American Penstemon Society. pp. 17, 65.
  19. ↑ IPNI (2023). "Catalogue of New and Interesting Plants Collected in Upper Louisiana and Principally on the River Missouri, North America, for Sale at Messrs. Fraser's Nursery for Curious American Plants, Sloane, Square, King's Road, Chelsea, [London 1813]". International Plant Names Index. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries and Australian National Herbarium. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  20. ↑ POWO (2023). "Penstemon viscidulus Nees". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  21. ↑ Bennett, Ralph W. (1987). Penstemon Nomenclature (2nd ed.). Eugene, Oregon: American Penstemon Society. pp. 15, 68.
  22. ↑ Keck, David D. (April 1938). "Studies in Penstemon VI. The Section Aurator". Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 65 (4): 237. doi:10.2307/2480925. JSTOR   2480925.
  23. ↑ Robison, Roy T.; White, Donald B. (1987). Prairie Communities (PDF). Minnesota Extension Service, University of Minnesota. pp. 3, 10, 13. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  24. ↑ Ueckert, D. N.; Hansen, R. M.; Terwilliger, C. (January 1972). "Influence of Plant Frequency and Certain Morphological Variations on Diets of Rangeland Grasshoppers". Journal of Range Management. 25 (1): 63. doi:10.2307/3896668. hdl: 10150/647448 . JSTOR   3896668 . Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  25. ↑ Way, David (2003). The gardener's guide to growing penstemons (Pbk. ed.). Portland, Or.: Timber Press. p. 86. ISBN   9780881925685.
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