Penstemon rostriflorus
| Penstemon rostriflorus | |
|---|---|
| Inyo National Forest, California | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Plantaginaceae |
| Genus: | Penstemon |
| Species: | P. rostriflorus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Penstemon rostriflorus | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Penstemon rostriflorus is a species of penstemon known as beak-flowered penstemon or beaked penstemon from the southwestern United States and Baja California.
Description
The beak-flowered penstemon resembles a small shrub and has stems that are woody near the base with many leaves.[2] The stems can reach 24 to 100 centimeters (9.5 to 39.5 in), but usually are taller than 30 cm (12 in).[3] The stems can be hairless or vaguely hairy with some plants hairless at near the base and covered in glandular hairs towards the ends.[4]
Almost all its leaves are attached to the stems,[4] though they are more numerous lower down on woody parts of the plant.[2] The few basal leaves and the lower ones on the stems are 2–5.2 cm (0.8–2.0 in) long, but just 3–11 millimeters wide with a widely angled point.[3] They are oblanceolate, like a reversed spear head in shape with the wider portion above the midpoint, and have a tapered base that is almost like a leaf stalk.[5] Higher up on the stems the leaves have the same lower limit but can reach lengths of 7 cm (2.8 in) and are 2–14 mm in width.[3] They are lanceolate, like a spear head with the widest part nearer the base, to nearly like a blade grass with the base of the leaf attached directly to the main stalk.[5]
The upper part of its stems is an inflorescence with branches called a thyrse measuring 3–28 cm (1.2–11.0 in), though usually more than 6 cm (2.4 in). It will have three to twelve groups of flowers.[3] Lower down in the inflorescence the flowers are on longer branches with two to five flowers. Higher up flowers become single on shorter branches.[5] Flower buds are green-yellow with red ends. It has bright scarlet flowers with projecting lobes resembling a beak at the top that are notched towards the end.[2] The inside of the flower tube is yellowish or orangish and does not have floral guide lines. They are overall 2.2–3.3 cm long. The staminode is 1.4–1.6 cm long and extends out of the flower's mouth.[3]
The fruit is a capsule measuring 7–10 mm long and 4–5 mm wide.[3]
Taxonomy
Penstemon rostriflorus was scientifically described and named in 1860 by Albert Kellogg.[6] However, the species was usually identified as Penstemon bridgesii in older sources.[2] The fact that Kellogg's name had priority was noticed by Frank Crosswhite and published in the 1984 fourth volume of the Intermountain Flora.[7] It is classified in the genus Penstemon within the family Plantaginaceae. It has no varieties, but has been described as a variety of one of it three synonyms.[6]
| Name | Year | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Penstemon bridgesii A.Gray | 1868 | species | = het. |
| Penstemon bridgesii var. amplexicaulis Monnet | 1915 | variety | = het. |
| Penstemon bridgesii var. rostriflorus (Kellogg) Schelle | 1903 | variety | ≡ hom., nom. superfl. |
| Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym ; = heterotypic synonym | |||
Names
Kellogg named it rostriflorus meaning "beak flower" in Botanical Latin.[4] It is similarly known by the common names beak-flowered penstemon or beaked penstemon.[8][9] It is also known as beak-flowered beardtongue or beaked beardtongue.[4] Like other red flowered hummingbird adapted penstemons such as Penstemon labrosus it is called scarlet penstemon.[9][10] Older names still used include bridge penstemon and Bridge's penstemon.[11][12]
Range and habitat
Beaked penstemon is native to the southwestern United States and Baja California in northwestern Mexico.[13] In Baja California it grows in the Sierra de Juárez range and may also grow in northern Sierra de San Pedro Mártir.[14] They grow on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada in California and south in the Transverse Ranges, the Peninsular Ranges, and the San Jacinto Mountains.[7][15] In Nevada and Utah they are found in the southern half of each state and in the northern part of Arizona.[7][16] In New Mexico it is recorded in just two widely separated western counties, San Juan and Catron,[16] but in Colorado the species is known in the three southwestern counties; Dolores, Montezuma, and La Plata.[17] It can be found at elevations of 1,200 to 3,200 meters (3,900–10,500 ft).[3]
It grows in association with sagebrush steppes, pinyon–juniper woodlands, Gamble oak scrublands, ponderosa pine forests, and mountain mahogany shrublands.[7] It is associated with sandstone outcrops and dry, sandy or rocky soils.[17] In Baja California it almost always grows in partial shade on wooded slopes and at the edges of meadows.[14]
Cultivation
The beaked penstemon has a long history of cultivation and is valued by gardeners for its moderate size being significantly shorter than the red flowered golden-beard penstemon (Penstemon barbatus) and for its long flowering period, from early to late Summer.[18] It is tolerant of a wide range of soils including clay, loam, and sandy and is hardy in USDA Zones 4b–8. It is grown from seeds, which require a 45-day cold-moist stratification.[19] In garden conditions it is a long-lived plant.[20]
References
Citations
- ^ NatureServe 2025.
- ^ a b c d Heflin 1997, p. 37.
- ^ a b c d e f g Freeman 2020.
- ^ a b c d Heil et al. 2013, p. 723.
- ^ a b c Cronquist et al. 1984, p. 454.
- ^ a b POWO 2025.
- ^ a b c d Cronquist et al. 1984, p. 455.
- ^ Heflin 1997, p. 36.
- ^ a b Wiese 2000, p. 96.
- ^ Tyrrell 1985, p. 194.
- ^ Wenk 2014, p. 270.
- ^ Busco & Morin 2010, p. 254.
- ^ Hassler 2025.
- ^ a b Wiggins 1980, p. 505.
- ^ Wetherwax & Holmgren 2012.
- ^ a b NRCS 2026.
- ^ a b Ackerfield 2022, p. 626.
- ^ Lindgren & Wilde 2003, pp. 78–79.
- ^ Plant Select 2017, p. 128.
- ^ Lindgren & Wilde 2003, p. 78.
Sources
- Books
- Ackerfield, Jennifer (2022). Flora of Colorado (Second ed.). Fort Worth, Texas: Botanical Research Institute of Texas Press. ISBN 978-1-889878-89-8. OCLC 1350496037.
- Busco, Janice; Morin, Nancy R. (2010) [2003]. Native Plants for High-Elevation Western Gardens (Second ed.). Golden, Colorado: Fulcrum Publishing. ISBN 978-1-55591-740-1. LCCN 2011288660. OCLC 712591270. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
- Cronquist, Arthur; Holmgren, Arthur H.; Holmgren, Noel H.; Reveal, James L.; Holmgren, Patricia K. (1984). Intermountain Flora : Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A.. Vol. Four. Subclass Asteridae (except Asteraceae). New York: Published for the New York Botanical Garden by Hafner Pub. Co. ISBN 978-0-89327-248-7. OCLC 320442. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- Heflin, Jean (1997). Penstemons : The Beautiful Beardtongues of New Mexico. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Jackrabbit Press. ISBN 978-0-9659693-0-7. OCLC 39050925. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- 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 22 November 2025.
- Lindgren, Dale Tennis; Wilde, Ellen; American Penstemon Society (2003). Growing Penstemons : Species, Cultivars, and Hybrids (First ed.). Haverford, Pennsylvania: Infinity Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7414-1529-5. LCCN 2004272722. OCLC 54110971. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
- Plant Select (2017). Pretty Tough Plants : 135 Resilient, Water-smart Choices for a Beautiful Garden. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press. ISBN 978-1-60469-735-3. OCLC 965154122. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
- Tyrrell, Esther Quesada (1985). Hummingbirds: Their Life and Behavior: A Photographic Study of the North American Species. Photographs by Robert A. Tyrrell (First ed.). New York: Crown Publishers. ISBN 978-0-517-55336-7. OCLC 10456837. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- Wenk, Elizabeth (2014). John Muir Trail: The Essential Guide to Hiking America's Most Famous Trail. New York: Wilderness Press. ISBN 978-0-89997-736-2. OCLC 858602692. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
- Wiese, Karen (2000). Sierra Nevada Wildflowers: A Field Guide to Common Wildflowers and Shrubs of the Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks. Helena, Mont: Falcon. ISBN 978-1-56044-981-2. OCLC 716475849. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- Wiggins, Ira L. (1980). Flora of Baja California. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-1016-9. OCLC 6284257. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
- Web sources
- Freeman, Craig C. (2020) [In print 2019]. "Penstemon rostriflorus". Flora of North America. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-19-086851-2. OCLC 1101573420. Archived from the original on 25 August 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- Hassler, Michael (11 November 2025). "Synonymic Checklist and Distribution of the World Flora. Version 25.11". World Plants. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- NatureServe (1 November 2025). "Penstemon rostriflorus". NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- NRCS (2026). "Penstemon rostriflorus". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 9 January 2026.
- POWO (2025). "Penstemon rostriflorus Kellogg". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
- Wetherwax, Margriet; Holmgren, Noel H. (2012). "Penstemon rostriflorus, in Jepson Flora Project". Jepson eFlora. University of California, Berkeley. Archived from the original on 28 May 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2025.