Chylismia multijuga

Herbs annual or biennial, villous, at least proximally, glabrous or even glaucous distally, rarely glandular puberulent. Stems virgate with numerous divergent branches, 20–150 cm. Leaves primarily in well-developed basal rosette, cauline reduced or absent, 6–30 × 1.4–6.5 cm; petiole 0.3–6 cm; blade pinnately or bipinnately lobed, terminal lobe ovate to elliptic, 2.5–6.5 × 1.5–3 cm, margins irregularly serrate, dark-brown oil cells prominently lining veins abaxially. Racemes erect to nodding, elongating in bud. Flowers opening at sunrise; buds individually reflexed, with apical or slightly subapical free tips less than 1 mm; floral-tube 1–3 mm, glabrous or villous inside proximally; sepals 3–8 mm; petals usually bright-yellow, rarely cream, fading yellow to lavender, 4–9 mm; stamens unequal, filaments of antisepalous stamens 2.5–4 mm, those of antipetalous ones 1.3–3 mm, anthers 2–4 mm, ciliate; style 7–11 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis. Capsules usually spreading, rarely slightly reflexed, oblong-cylindrical, 10–52 mm; pedicel 7–20 mm. Seeds 1–1.3 mm. 2n = 14.

Phenology: Flowering Mar–Jun(–Sep).
Habitat: Forming colonies on rocky slopes and banks of eroded sedimentaries, on gypsum or limestone, on conglomerates, often with Juniperus and Pinus edulis, with Encelia farinosa and Larrea.
Elevation: 300–1100 m.

Ariz., Nev., Utah.

Discussion

Chylismia multijuga is known from Washington County, Utah, and southern Lincoln County, Nevada, to northern Mohave County, Arizona. P. H. Raven (1962, 1969) determined this species to be self-incompatible. It hybridizes with C. brevipes subspp. brevipes and pallidula.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa