Chionophila
| Chionophila | |
|---|---|
| Chionophila jamesii | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Plantaginaceae |
| Tribe: | Cheloneae |
| Genus: | Chionophila Benth. |
| Species[1] | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Chionophila, also known as snowlover, is a genus of plants in the veronica family. They are most similar to the penstemons, though a distinct group.
Description
Snowlovers are distinguished from other North American species in the veronica family by having a single staminode, seeds with wings, and smooth leaf edges, but lacking bracteoles.[2] They are perennial plants with stems that can grow along the ground or straight upwards from the plant's crown. They have short rhizomes and slightly tuberous roots.[3]
They have basal leaves, those attached to the base of the plant, and cauline ones attached to the stems. The attached to the stems are smaller than the basal leaves and attached in pairs to opposite sides of the stems, though sometimes they are attached alternately on the uppermost part of the stem.[4] Although, most of the leaves are basal.[3]
The flowers are in a spike-like raceme, the flowers attached directly to the main stem or by very short flower stalks.[5] The flowers are secund, all facing away from the stem in the same direction.[4]
Taxonomy
The genus Chionophila was scientifically described in 1846 with one species by George Bentham.[6] It is classified as part of the family Plantaginaceae and is placed with the Cheloneae within the family. Though they have many similarities to the Penstemons the relationships in the tribe are unclear.[4] It has one botanical synonym, Pentstemonopsis created by Per Axel Rydberg in 1917. According to Plants of the World Online it has two accepted species:[1]
Chionophila jamesii
This species was described by Bentham alongside the genus in 1846. It is native to Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming.[7] It is distinguished by having its flowers tightly packed on the inflorescence and has a calyx of fused sepals with a tube 8–9 millimeters long.[4]
Chionophila tweedyi
This species was first described in 1890 as Penstemon tweedyi by William Marriott Canby and Joseph Nelson Rose. It was moved to Chionophila in 1900 by Edward George Henderson. This is also the species that Rydberg created the synonymous genus Pentstemonopsis for in 1917. It is native to Idaho and Montana.[8] It is distinguished by having its flowers in groups spread out on the inflorescence and has a calyx of fused sepals with a tube 1–2 millimeters long.[4]
Names
The genus name is a Botanical Latin compound from two Greek words χιών (chion) meaning "snow" and φῐ́λος (philos) meaning loving, referring to the snowy high elevation habitat.[9] The genus is likewise known by the common names snowlover,[4] snow-lover,[3] or snow lover,[10] though both species are also casually called snowlover.[11]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c POWO 2026a.
- ^ Freeman, Rabeler, Elisens, & 2020.
- ^ a b c Heil et al. 2013, p. 711.
- ^ a b c d e f Freeman 2021.
- ^ Harrington 1964, p. 505.
- ^ POWO 2026a; POWO 2026b; Bentham 1846, p. 331.
- ^ POWO 2026b.
- ^ POWO 2026c.
- ^ Clements & Clements 1914, p. 129.
- ^ Carleton 1959.
- ^ Dannen & Dannen 1981, p. 51; Strickler 1990, p. 94.
Sources
Books
- Bentham, George (1846). "Scrophulariaceae". In de Candolle, Alphonse (ed.). Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis (in Latin). Paris: G. Masson. OCLC 9075956. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- Carleton, R. Milton (1959). Index to Common Names of Herbaceous Plants. Hamden, Connecticut: The Shoe String Press. OCLC 3193367. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
- Clements, Frederic Edward; Clements, Edith Schwartz (1914). Rocky Mountain Flowers; An Illustrated Guide for Plant-lovers and Plant-users. White Plains, New York: H. W. Wilson Company. OCLC 1568247331. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- Dannen, Kent; Dannen, Donna (1981). Rocky Mountain Wildflowers. Estes Park, Colorado: Tundra Publications. ISBN 978-0-9606768-0-4. OCLC 7554392. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- Harrington, Harold David (1964). Manual of the Plants of Colorado; For the Identification of the Ferns and Flowering Plants of the State (Second ed.). Denver, Colorado: Sage Books. ISBN 978-0-8040-0195-3. OCLC 1966260.
{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help) - Heil, Kenneth D.; O'Kane, Steve L. Jr.; Reeves, Linda Mary; Clifford, Arnold (2013). Flora of the Four Corners Region: Vascular Plants of the San Juan River Drainage, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah (First ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Missouri Botanical Garden. ISBN 978-1-930723-84-9. ISSN 0161-1542. LCCN 2012949654. OCLC 859541992. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- Strickler, Dee (1990). Alpine Wildflowers: Showy Wildflowers of the Alpine and Subalpine Areas of the Rocky Mountain States. Columbia Falls, Montana: Flower Press. ISBN 978-1-56044-011-6. OCLC 22294758. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
Web sources
- Freeman, Craig C. (14 January 2021) [In print 2019]. "Chionophila". Flora of North America. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-19-086851-2. OCLC 1101573420. Archived from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- Freeman, Craig C.; Rabeler, Richard K.; Elisens, Wayne J. (5 November 2020) [In print 2019]. "Plantaginaceae". Flora of North America. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-19-086851-2. OCLC 1101573420. Archived from the original on 27 August 2024. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- POWO (2026a). "Chionophila Benth". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- POWO (2026b). "Chionophila jamesii Benth". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- POWO (2026c). "Chionophila tweedyi (Canby & Rose) Hend". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 February 2026.