Epilobium minutum
Encyclopedia
Epilobium minutum is a species of willowherb
Epilobium
Epilobium is a genus in the family Onagraceae, containing about 160-200 species of flowering plants with a worldwide distribution. They are generally abundant in the subarctic, temperate and subantarctic regions, whereas in the subtropics and tropics they are restricted to the cool montane biomes,...

 known by the common names Chaparral Willowherb and Desert Willowherb. It is also called "smallflower willowherb", however that name, in particular the British English
British English
British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...

 variant "Small-flowered Willowherb", typically refers to Epilobium parviflorum.
This annual wildflower is native to western North America from British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 and Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

 to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

. This is a plant of fields and meadows, including vernal pool
Vernal pool
Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are temporary pools of water. They are usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe development of natal amphibian and insect species...

s, and it is one of the first flowers to spring up in areas recently cleared by wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...

.

Description

Epilobium minutum is a small, spindly plant with thin, branching stems approaching a maximum of 40 centimeters in height. The sparse leaves are oval-shaped and one or two centimeters long. The stems are topped with few tiny white to light purple flowers with notched petals each a few millimeters long. The fruit is a capsule one or two centimeters in length.

External links

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