Max Licher @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)
Plant
Max Licher @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)
Forb Plant Description
Origin:
Native
Life Cycle:
Annual
General Desc:
A sprawling, compact plant which forms a dense mat. Identification notes: Herbage without hairs; fruit capsule less than 2mm long, without hairs, widest below the middle and ridged; opposite leaves about up to 1/2 inch long and not symmetric at the base; well developed stipules; elliptic glands on the flower bracts. Height:
Less than 1 inch Habitat
Habitat Description: Its native habitat is sandy, rocky areas and semi-desert. It can be used to stabilize disturbed areas. Plant Communities:
Desert Scrub, Interior Chaparral, Semidesert Grasslands, Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Disturbed Areas Elevation: Below 4500 feet Flower Characteristics
Color:
Pink with white border
Shape:
Regular in round clusters
Tubular:
N
Flowering Period:
Jun - Nov Description:
Very small staminate flowers around each pistillate flower creates a rounded cluster.
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Leaf Color:
Dark green
Leaf Type:
Simple
Leaf Shape:
Round or oval
Leaf Margin:
Smooth
Leaf Attachment:
Opposite
Leaves Clasp:
N Hairs:
No
Spines:
N
Leaf Description:
Entire leaf margins and smooth stems secrete a milky sap when broken. The main stem emanates from a strong taproot. Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Fruit Color: Light brown Fruit Type: Capsule Fruit Notes: Purplish seed capsules are 3 lobed and less than 1/16 inch long. Seed Notes: Tiny, ridged oblong seeds. The seeds are coarsely transcorrugated which gives the plant its common name.
Arizona Cooperative Extension
Yavapai County
840 Rodeo Dr #C
Prescott, AZ 86305
(928) 445-6590