Erysimum capitatum

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Erysimum capitatum
Erysimum capitatum 8S6A0648.jpg
Erysimum capitatum var. lompocense near Vandenburg Village
Status TNC G5.svg
Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Brassicales
Family: Brassicaceae
Genus: Erysimum
Species:
E. capitatum
Binomial name
Erysimum capitatum

Erysimum capitatum is a species of wallflower known commonly as the sanddune wallflower, western wallflower, or prairie rocket.

Contents

This species can be found in regions across North America, from the Great Lakes to the West Coast of the United States. Some varieties have an extremely narrow distribution, especially those endemic to California.

Description

Erysimum capitatum is a mustard-like plant with thin, erect stems growing from a basal rosette and topped with dense bunches of variably colored flowers. Flowers are most typically bright golden, yellow, or tangerine-colored, but plants in some populations may have red, white or purple flowers. Each flower has four flat petals. Seed pods are nearly parallel to the stem. It is a biennial herb and its native habitats include plains, foothills, and high elevation coniferous forests. [2] The Latin specific epithet capitatum refers to the head-like shape of the flower cluster or the knobby stigma. [3]

Subspecies

There are varieties or subspecies of this plant. Some are listed endangered species. For example, Erysimum capitatum var. angustatum, the Contra Costa wallflower, is an endangered plant in the state of California. The varieties include:

Pollinators

Little information on this wallflower species relationship with pollinators exists. Andrew Moldenke studied a population of Erysimum capitatum var. perenne in Subalpine Talus Fell Scree of the Timberland Hall Area (2,900–3,500 metres (9,500–11,500 ft) elevation). He observed 13 species of flower visitors, although over 80% of the visits to the flowers were performed by two ant species, Formica lasioides and one from the Formica fusca group.

Cultivation

Erysimum capitatum is cultivated as an ornamental plant. [12] It is an attractive perennial, can be variable in appearance, and is used in butterfly gardening.

Uses

In Zuni ethnobotany, an infusion of the whole plant is used externally for muscle aches. The flower and the fruit are eaten as an emetic for stomach aches. [13]

Related Research Articles

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Erysimum, or wallflower, is a genus of flowering plants in the cabbage family, Brassicaceae. It includes more than 150 species, both popular garden plants and many wild forms. The genus Cheiranthus is sometimes included here in whole or in part. Erysimum has since the early 21st century been ascribed to a monogeneric cruciferous tribe, Erysimeae, characterised by sessile, stellate (star-shaped) and/or malpighiaceous (two-sided) trichomes, yellow to orange flowers and multiseeded siliques.

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

Dipterostemon is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae. Its only species is Dipterostemon capitatus, synonym Dichelostemma capitatum, known by the common names blue dicks, purplehead and brodiaea, native to the Western United States and northwest Mexico.

<i>Eriogonum fasciculatum</i> Species of flowering shrub

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<i>Salix lasiolepis</i> Species of willow

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

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<i>Apodemia mormo langei</i> Subspecies of butterfly

Apodemia mormo langei, the Lange's metalmark butterfly, is an endangered North American butterfly. It is a subspecies of the Mormon metalmark and belongs to the family Riodinidae. The butterfly is endemic to California, where it is known from one strip of riverbank in the San Francisco Bay Area. A 2008 count estimated the total remaining population at 131 individuals. Since 2011, this number has dropped to about 25–30.

<i>Erysimum ammophilum</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Astragalus purshii</i> Species of legume

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<i>Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus</i> Species of flowering plant

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

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<i>Oenothera deltoides <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> howellii</i> Subspecies of plant

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<i>Ribes cereum</i> Species of currant

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<i>Xylorhiza tortifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Astragalus amphioxys</i> Species of legume

Astragalus amphioxys, common name crescent milkvetch, is a plant found in the American southwest, including the whole of Utah, the southeast part of Nevada, the north part of Arizona, the western part of Colorado, the northwestern part of New Mexico, and one county in Texas. It was first described by Asa Gray in 1878.

<i>Erysimum asperum</i> Species of plant in the family Brassicaceae

Erysimum asperum, the western wallflower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. It is native to west-central Canada, the west-central United States, and northern Mexico; in grasslands generally east of the Continental Divide and west of the Mississippi. It is a member of the Erysimum asperum-E. capitatum species complex.

References

  1. NatureServe (2023). "Erysimum capitatum". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  2. "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  3. "Erysimum capitatum - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  4. Calflora: Erysimum capitatum var. angustatum
  5. CNPS Inventory: Endangered Plant details: Erysimum capitatum var. angustatum
  6. Calflora: Erysimum capitatum var. bealianum
  7. Utah Valley State College Herbarium
  8. "UVU Virtual Herbarium". Utah Valley University Herbarium. Utah Valley University. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  9. Calflora: Erysimum capitatum var. lompocense
  10. Calflora: Erysimum perenne
  11. Calflora: Erysimum capitatum var. purshii
  12. "Erysimum capitatum, Western Wallflower". Las Pilitas Nursery. Retrieved 2013-02-14.
  13. Camazine, Scott; Robert A. Bye (1980). "A Study Of The Medical Ethnobotany Of The Zuni Indians of New Mexico". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 2 (4): 365–88. doi:10.1016/S0378-8741(80)81017-8. PMID   6893476.