Ceanothus palmeri

Trelease

Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci., ser. 2, 1: 109. 1888.

Common names: Palmer’s ceanothus
Synonyms: Ceanothus spinosus var. palmeri (Trelease) K. L. Brandegee
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 12. Treatment on page 86. Mentioned on page 79.

Shrubs, evergreen or semideciduous, 1–2 m. Stems ascending to erect, not rooting at nodes; branchlets green or gray-green, not thorn-tipped, round in cross-section, flexible or rigid, glabrous or glabrate. Leaves: not fascicled; petiole 3–8 mm; blade ± cupped, elliptic, oblong, or oblong-ovate, 13–30 × 9–15 mm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins entire, apex acute to rounded, abaxial surface pale green, glabrous, adaxial surface green, dull to ± shiny, glabrous; usually pinnately veined, rarely 3-veined. Inflorescences terminal or axillary, paniclelike, 7.5–22 cm. Flowers: sepals, petals, and nectary usually white, rarely pale blue. Capsules 4.5–7 mm wide, lobed; valves smooth, viscid, crested.


Phenology: Flowering Mar–Jun.
Habitat: Rocky slopes, chaparral, conifer forests.
Elevation: 1100–1800 m.

Distribution

V12 544-distribution-map.jpg

Calif., Mexico (Baja California)

Discussion

Ceanothus palmeri occurs in the Transverse and Peninsular ranges of California, with a disjunct distribution in the central Sierra Nevada foothills (Amador and El Dorado counties). Ceanothus palmeri appears to be closely related to and intermediate between C. integerrimus and C. spinosus (W. L. Jepson 1909–1943, vol. 2; M. Van Rensselaer and H. McMinn 1942). We treat this species as distinct from C. spinosus on the basis of its white flowers, and viscid, lobed fruit, but note that some populations intergrade, especially in the Transverse Ranges of southern California. Leaf blades of both C. palmeri and C. spinosus have somewhat shiny adaxial faces, but those of C. integerrimus appear dull. Included here are plants with weakly three-veined leaf blades with somewhat shiny adaxial surfaces from the Transverse Ranges, previously treated by Van Rensselaer and McMinn as part of C. integerrimus.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"thin" is not a number.

... more about "Ceanothus palmeri"
dull +  and more or less shiny +
perigynous +  and epigynous +
acute +  and rounded +
Clifford L. Schmidt† +  and Dieter H. Wilken +
Trelease +
cuneate +  and obtuse +
3-veined +  and veined +
not gland-dotted +
1.3 cm13 mm <br />0.013 m <br /> (3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br />) +
3[-5]-veined +  and pinnate +
spinulose +, spinose +, serrate +  and entire +
denticulate +, dentate +, crenulate +, crenate +  and serrulate +
oblong-ovate;oblong;oblong-ovate;oblong;elliptic +
0.9 cm9 mm <br />0.009 m <br /> (1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br />) +
not thorn-tipped +
glabrate +  and glabrous +
0.45 cm4.5 mm <br />0.0045 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
Palmer’s ceanothus +
Calif. +  and Mexico (Baja California) +
1100–1800 m. +
Rocky slopes, chaparral, conifer forests. +
free +  and adnate +
shallowly cupulate +  and hemispheric +
axillary +  and terminal +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
7.5 cm75 mm <br />0.075 m <br /> (22 cm220 mm <br />0.22 m <br />) +
3-veined +  and veined +
deciduous +  and persistent +
pale blue;white +
intrastaminal +
superior +  and inferior +
not fleshy +
perigynous +  and epigynous +
pink +, usually white +  and cream blue or purple +
adnate +  and distinct +
6 +  and 5 +
clawed +, obovate +  and spatulate +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br />) +
Flowering Mar–Jun. +
2-4-carpellate +
Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci., ser. +
pink +, usually white +  and cream blue or purple +
distinct +
spreading +  and incurved +
6 +  and 5 +
keeled;lanceolate;deltate +
not rooting +
ascending +  and erect +
3-veined +  and veined +
Ceanothus spinosus var. palmeri +
Ceanothus palmeri +
Ceanothus subg. Ceanothus +
species +
paniclelike +  and racemelike +
gland-tipped +
crested +
unarmed +  and armed +
semideciduous +  and evergreen +
polygamous +, dioecious +  and synoecious +