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 Leaves David Thornburg @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: CC0 1.0 (Public-domain) |  Plant Max Licher @http://swbiodiversity.org, Usage Rights: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) | | | | |
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Origin:
Native
Life Cycle:
Annual Similar Species: Cordylanthus parviflorus
General Desc:
Leafy, upright, much branched parasitic annual; lower stems and leaves have coarse, stiff hairs, upper foliage is often glandular with long, soft, shaggy hairs; spikes of 2-lipped yellow flowers resembling a bird's beak are scattered along the branches.
Identification notes: Annual; roots yellow; stems branched; leaves narrow, smooth margined, hairy, often glandular above; flowers bright yellow, scattered among the branches, narrow, 2-lipped, lower lip 1/2 to 2/3 the length of upper.
Height:
To nearly 16 inches
Habitat Description: Dry mesas and slopes, often in limestone soils and with junipers.
Plant Communities:
Interior Chaparral, Semidesert Grasslands, Pinyon Juniper Woodland
Elevation: 3500 - 6000 feet
Color:
Bright yellow, purplish with age
Shape:
Irregular in elongated clusters
Tubular:
Y
Flowering Period:
Aug - Oct
Description:
Flowers grow in spikey clusters, are bright yellow when fresh but dry purplish and are surrounded by an outer layer of hairy leaf-like bracts. Each flower is from 1/2 to 3/4 inch long and 2-lipped with the lower lip 1/2 to 2/3 as long as the upper.
Leaf Color:
Green
Leaf Type:
Simple
Leaf Shape:
Narrow
Leaf Margin:
Smooth
Leaf Attachment:
Alternate
Leaves Clasp:
N
Hairs:
Leaves and stems
Spines:
N
Leaf Description:
Both the upper and lower leaves are densely hairy with long, soft, straight hairs and range from about 1/4 to 3/4 inch. The lower leaves may have 3-lobed margins (each lobe being about 1/16 inch wide) while the upper leaves have smooth margins.
Fruit Color: Light brown
Fruit Type: Capsule
Fruit Notes: The fruit is a flattened capsule about 1/2 inch long with an oblong lance-like shape. It contains few to many seeds, often about 15 to 20.
Seed Notes: Each seed is light brown, less than 1/16 inch, kidney-shaped, with net-like veins and rounded bumps on its surface.
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