Eriastrum pluriflorum
Encyclopedia
Eriastrum pluriflorum is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family
known by the common names Tehachapi woollystar and many-flowered eriastrum. This wildflower is endemic to California
where it is an uncommon resident of varied chaparral
and woodland habitats in the central part of the state from the San Francisco Bay Area
to the Mojave Desert
. This is a small annual plant which may be anywhere from 2 to 25 centimeters in height, forming an erect bunch or a small patch on the ground. Its stem has the occasional narrow, thready leaf a few centimeters in length and coated in woolly hairs. The inflorescence
is a mass of spindly bract
s strung thickly with dense, cobwebby wool and bearing many distinctive trumpet-shaped flowers. Each flower has a very narrow throat tube one to two centimeters long ending in a flat faced corolla. The centimeter-wide corolla has five rounded to diamond-shaped lobes which are bright lavender to blue. The throat of the flower may be the same color or yellowish to reddish. The light-colored stamen
s protrude from the corolla.
Polemoniaceae
Polemoniaceae are a family of about 25 genera with 270-400 species of annual and perennial plants, native to the Northern Hemisphere and South America, with the center of diversity in western North America, especially in California.Only one genus is found in Europe, and two in Asia, where they...
known by the common names Tehachapi woollystar and many-flowered eriastrum. This wildflower is endemic 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...
where it is an uncommon resident of varied chaparral
Chaparral
Chaparral is a shrubland or heathland plant community found primarily in the U.S. state of California and in the northern portion of the Baja California peninsula, Mexico...
and woodland habitats in the central part of the state from the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
to the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
. This is a small annual plant which may be anywhere from 2 to 25 centimeters in height, forming an erect bunch or a small patch on the ground. Its stem has the occasional narrow, thready leaf a few centimeters in length and coated in woolly hairs. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a mass of spindly bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
s strung thickly with dense, cobwebby wool and bearing many distinctive trumpet-shaped flowers. Each flower has a very narrow throat tube one to two centimeters long ending in a flat faced corolla. The centimeter-wide corolla has five rounded to diamond-shaped lobes which are bright lavender to blue. The throat of the flower may be the same color or yellowish to reddish. The light-colored stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s protrude from the corolla.