Hesperolinon

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Hesperolinon
Hesperolinonmicranthum.jpg
Hesperolinon micranthum
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Linaceae
Subfamily: Linoideae
Genus: Hesperolinon
(Gray) Small
Species

13, see text

Hesperolinon is a genus in the family Linaceae, whose common genus names are dwarf-flax or western flax, in reference to their distribution along the west coast of North America. There are 13 known species within this genus of wildflowers, most of which are limited to serpentine soil habitats within California, United States. [1] These annual plants are thought to be mostly self-pollinating.

Contents

Description

Stems vary between five and fifty centimeters in length, with thread-like to linear leaves generally alternate: the leaves are typically not planar and not clasping. Cymes are characteristically open and pedicels are somewhat thread-like and ascending. The flower has five sepals, whose margins may be minutely gland-toothed. Five petals are widely spreading between one and twelve millimeters in dimension. These yellow, white or rose colored petals each manifest three minute scales at the inner base. There are five stamens and four to six ovary chambers; styles number two to three. Fruits have a smooth surface exterior.

Species

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<i>Hesperolinon congestum</i> Species of flowering plant

Hesperolinon congestum, or Marin dwarf flax, is an annual herb, which is known to occur only in San Mateo, San Francisco and Marin County, California, United States. This plant occurs chiefly on serpentine soils, especially in dry native bunch grasses, chaparral or other grasslands at elevations less than 200 meters. The flowers are congested at the tips of the dichotomously branching stems. H. congestum is in flower between April and July. The outlook for this plant depends on survival of only about twenty small colonies, most of which are not actively managed for protection, even though the species is federally and state-listed as threatened. This species is also less commonly known as Marin western flax.

<i>Streptanthus niger</i>

Streptanthus niger is an endangered species within the family Brassicaceae. Like other genus members, this herb has wavy petal margins with perimeter calluses that discourage larval herbivory. This plant is endemic to the Tiburon Peninsula of Northern California, and occurs at elevations below 150 m on serpentine grasslands. The common name for this species is Tiburon jewelflower or black jewelflower. This annual herb blooms in May and June and displays dark purple sepals. The etymology of this genus scientific name derives from the Greek word streptanthus, meaning twisted flower, with reference to the notable wavy margins of the petals. The species name niger relates to the color of the seeds being black, although an alternate account cites the dark color of the petals as the source of the appellation.

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Hesperolinon adenophyllum is a rare species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common names glandular dwarf flax and glandular western flax. It is endemic to California, where most known occurrences have been recorded in Lake and Mendocino Counties. It is generally found in chaparral ecosystems on serpentine soils. This is an annual herb growing erect to heights between 10 and 50 centimeters. Its narrow, lance-shaped leaves are lined with rows of teeth with large knobby glandular points. The flower has small sepals speckled with glandular hairs and five thin yellow petals. The stamens protrude from the face of the flower and hold large yellow anthers.

<i>Hesperolinon breweri</i> Species of flowering plant

Hesperolinon breweri is a rare species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common names Brewer's dwarf flax and Brewer's western flax. It is endemic to California, where it is known from three counties in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is found in chaparral ecosystems, often on serpentine soils. This is an annual herb growing erect to a maximum height near centimeters. Its narrow, linear leaves are greenish to purplish in color. It produces dense inflorescences of flowers with glandular sepals and five bright yellow petals. The protruding stamens hold large orange-yellow anthers. This uncommon California endemic is threatened by development of its habitat but its current status is not known.

Hesperolinon californicum is a species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common name California dwarf flax. It is endemic to California, where it grows in the coastal mountains and hills surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area and some of the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. It is found in grassland and chaparral ecosystems, often on serpentine soils. This is an annual herb growing erect to 10 to 25 centimeters in height. It has thin, narrow to threadlike leaves and produces a red exudate from resin glands located at the base of leaf petioles. The inflorescence holds several flowers with glandular sepals and five white to pink-tinged petals. The protruding stamens are tipped with large pink anthers.

Hesperolinon drymarioides is a rare species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common names drymary dwarf flax and drymaria-like western flax; it is named for its resemblance to genus Drymaria. It is endemic to California, where it grows in the central inland North Coast Range. Most of the few known occurrences have been noted in Lake County. It is a plant of serpentine soils in chaparral and woodland ecosystems. This is a small annual herb growing a thin branching brown stem low to the ground or erect to about 20 centimeters in height. Leaves appear in whorls of four on the lower part of the stem and are dark reddish green with plentiful glandular hairs. Its flowers have light pink-veined white petals in a corolla about a centimeter across. Protruding stamens hold large yellow or purplish-white anthers.

<i>Hesperolinon micranthum</i> Species of flowering plant

Hesperolinon micranthum is a species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common name smallflower dwarf flax. It is native to the west coast of North America from Oregon to Baja California. It may occur in Nevada. It grows in a number of open habitats, often on serpentine soils. This is a spindly annual herb producing a very thin stem 5 to 20 centimeters in height. Its small, sparse leaves are linear in shape. The tiny flowers have five white or pink-veined white petals each less than four millimeters long and protruding stamens with white or purple anthers.

Hesperolinon serpentinum is a rare species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common name Napa dwarf flax, or Napa western flax. Hesperolinon serpentinum was not validly published by McCarten although it appears in the Jepson Manual. The species was validly published as Hesperolinon sharsmithae in 2006 by O'Donnell. The species is endemic to northern California, where it is known from fewer than twenty occurrences in four counties surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a member of chaparral plant communities, generally on serpentine soils. It produces a thin, erect stem up to 30 centimeters tall, with sparse flat, narrow leaves. The inflorescence holds several light yellow flowers with petals only 2 or 3 millimeters long. The plant is threatened mainly by development of its habitat.

Hesperolinon tehamense is a rare species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common names Tehama County western flax and Paskenta Grade dwarf flax. It is endemic to northern California, where it is known from only about ten occurrences, mostly within Tehama and Glenn Counties. Most of its habitat is on Bureau of Land Management lands and within the Mendocino National Forest, in chaparral ecosystems with serpentine soils. The plant produces thin, hairy stems up to 50 centimeters in maximum height with small, sparse linear leaves. The inflorescence bears several small flowers with pale to bright yellow notched petals just a few millimeters long.

<i>Hesperolinon disjunctum</i> Species of flowering plant

Hesperolinon disjunctum is a species of flowering plant in the flax family known by the common name Coast Range dwarf flax. It is endemic to California, where it has a disjunct distribution along the North and Central Coast Ranges.

<i>Franklandia</i> Genus of small shrubs in the family Proteaceae

Franklandia is a genus of small shrubs in family Proteaceae, commonly known as lanolin bushes. It is endemic to Southwest Australia.

Sclerolinon is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the flax family containing the single species Sclerolinon digynum, which is known by the common name northwestern yellowflax. It is native to the western United States where it is known from Washington and Idaho through central California; however, it may now be extirpated from Idaho. It grows in seasonally wet habitat such as mountain meadows and vernal pools. This is an annual herb producing a hairless, erect stem up to 20 centimeters tall. The leaves are oval in shape, the upper ones with serrated edges. They are oppositely arranged about the stem and grow erect instead of spreading away from the stem. The inflorescence is a cyme of flowers surrounded by serrated, leaflike bracts. The flower has five yellow petals in a calyx of toothed sepals.

References

  1. Helen K. Sharsmith, 1961 Univ Calif Publ Bot, 32:235–314