Penstemon palmeri, known by the common name Palmer's penstemon, is a species of perennial flowering plant in the genus Penstemon that is notable for its showy, rounded flowers, and for being one of the few scented penstemons. The plant, in the family Plantaginaceae, is named after the botanist Edward Palmer.
Penstemon debilis, the Parachute penstemon or Parachute beardtongue, is one of the rarest plants in North America, found only 5 places in the world, all of them located on the Roan Plateau in Garfield County, of Western Colorado. The Denver Botanic Gardens has the Parachute penstemon on display with other native plants of the Roan Plateau. The name Parachute comes from the small town in Colorado, Parachute, Colorado, close to where the plant can be found.
Penstemon strictus, the Rocky Mountain penstemon, is a penstemon with showy blue flowers.
Penstemon parryi, the Parry's penstemon, Parry's beardtongue or desert penstemon, is a wildflower native to the Sonoran Desert of Southern Arizona and northern Mexico. It is a perennial that blooms in March and April. In the wild, plants flower in their second year. In cultivation, flowering is often achieved in the first year if seed is planted in the autumn.
Penstemon digitalis is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, Plantaginaceae. The flowers are white and are borne in summer. It is native to eastern Canada and the eastern and southeastern United States. Penstemon digitalis is the most widespread species of Penstemon east of the Mississippi River.
Penstemon caesius is a species of penstemon known by the common name San Bernardino beardtongue. It is endemic to California, where it is known from the San Bernardino and San Gabriel Mountains, as well as the southern mountains of the Sierra Nevada. It is a member of the flora on rocky slopes and in coniferous forests and alpine habitat in the mountains. It is a perennial herb with erect branches up to about 80 centimeters in maximum height. The lower branches may be woody, the upper hairless and waxy, and the inflorescence glandular. Most of the leaves are basal on the plant, rounded or oval, and up to about 4 centimeters long. The inflorescence produces purple-blue tubular flowers roughly 2 centimeters long. The flower has a glandular outer surface, a coat of hairs inside, and a hairless staminode. The flowers of this penstemon are pollinated by bees of genus Osmia, which feed on their nectar.
Penstemon fruticiformis is a species of penstemon known by the common name Death Valley beardtongue. It is native to the western United States, where it is found growing in rocky scrub, woodlands, deserts and mountains of eastern California and western Nevada. It is known from scattered occurrences around Death Valley, and only one of the two varieties occurs on the Nevada side of the border. It is a perennial herb producing spreading, multibranched, hairless and waxy stems 30 to 60 centimeters tall. The thick leaves are generally lance-shaped, folded and rolled, and up to 6.5 centimeters in length. The inflorescence produces several white or pale pinkish-lavender flowers between 2 and 3 centimeters long. The mouth of the flower bears a stark, dark line on each of its three lower lobes, nectar guides for its pollinators which probably include native bumble bees.
Penstemon heterophyllus is a species of penstemon known by the common names bunchleaf penstemon, foothill penstemon, and foothill beardtongue. It is endemic to California.
Penstemon penlandii is a rare species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names Penland penstemon and Penland's beardtongue. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it is known only from a strip of land about five miles long in central Grand County. There are two occurrences totalling about 8600 individuals. This is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Penstemon attenuatus is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names sulphur penstemon and taperleaf beardtongue. It is native to the northwestern United States.
Penstemon cyaneus is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names blue penstemon and dark-blue beardtongue. It is native to the western United States, where it is widespread in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
Penstemon humilis is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names low beardtongue and lowly beardtongue. It is native to the western United States.
Penstemon serrulatus is a species of penstemon known by the common names Cascade penstemon, coast penstemon, or serrulate penstemon. It is native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, from Oregon to Alaska.
Penstemon davidsonii is a species of penstemon known by the common name Davidson's penstemon, honoring Dr. George Davidson. It is native to North America from the Sierra Nevada Range in California and Nevada through the Coast and Cascade ranges of Oregon and Washington into British Columbia.
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.
Penstemon virens, commonly known as blue mist penstemon, Front Range beardtongue, 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 common name, blue mist penstemon, refers to the cloud of flowers on multiple stems facing every direction.
Penstemon albidus, commonly known as white penstemon, white-flower beardtongue, or Red-Line Beardtongue is a very widespread perennial flower of the mixed-grass and shortgrass prairies. Its natural distribution is from Manitoba and Alberta in Canada to Texas and New Mexico in the United States. The bright white flowers for which they are named are quite attractive to both bees and hummingbird moths.
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-drained soil.
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.
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.
