Penstemon floridus
Encyclopedia
Penstemon floridus is a species of penstemon
known by the common name Panamint beardtongue. It is native to the lower mountain and plateau areas of eastern California
and western Nevada
, where it grows in canyons, arroyos
, and sagebrush scrub. It is a perennial herb producing erect stems sometimes exceeding one meter tall. The thick leaves are lance-shaped to oval, usually toothed and somewhat wavy, and arranged in pairs with bases clasping the stem. The glandular inflorescence
produces showy flowers up to 3 centimeters long and tubular in shape with a wide throat becoming narrowed at the lipped mouth. The flowers are bright pink with darker lining inside.
There are two varieties of this species. Austin's beardtongue, var. austinii, is named for Stafford Wallace Austin, collector of plants and husband of writer Mary Hunter Austin
.
Penstemon
Penstemon , Beard-tongue, is a large genus of North American and East Asian plants traditionally placed in the Scrophulariaceae family. Due to new genetic research, it has now been placed in the vastly expanded family Plantaginaceae...
known by the common name Panamint beardtongue. It is native to the lower mountain and plateau areas of eastern 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 western Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, where it grows in canyons, arroyos
Arroyo (creek)
An arroyo , a Spanish word translated as brook, and also called a wash is usually a dry creek or stream bed—gulch that temporarily or seasonally fills and flows after sufficient rain. Wadi is a similar term in Africa. In Spain, a rambla has a similar meaning to arroyo.-Types and processes:Arroyos...
, and sagebrush scrub. It is a perennial herb producing erect stems sometimes exceeding one meter tall. The thick leaves are lance-shaped to oval, usually toothed and somewhat wavy, and arranged in pairs with bases clasping the stem. The glandular 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...
produces showy flowers up to 3 centimeters long and tubular in shape with a wide throat becoming narrowed at the lipped mouth. The flowers are bright pink with darker lining inside.
There are two varieties of this species. Austin's beardtongue, var. austinii, is named for Stafford Wallace Austin, collector of plants and husband of writer Mary Hunter Austin
Mary Hunter Austin
Mary Hunter Austin was an American writer. One of the early nature writers of the American Southwest, her classic The Land of Little Rain describes the fauna, flora and people – as well as evoking the mysticism and spirituality – of the region between the High Sierra and the Mojave Desert of...
.