Phlox diffusa
Encyclopedia
Phlox diffusa is a species of phlox
known by the common name spreading phlox. It is native to western North America from British Columbia
to the southwestern United States to the Dakotas
, where it grows in many types of habitat, including rocky, high elevation mountain slopes. It is a very compact mat-forming perennial
herb
growing in cushions or patches of short, decumbent stems. The linear, lance-shaped, or needle-like leaves are no more than 1.5 centimeters long and are oppositely arranged in bundles on the short stems. The inflorescence
is a solitary tubular flower around a centimeter long. It has a flat white or pale pink or blue corolla with five lobes each just under a centimeter in length.
Phlox
Phlox is a genus of 67 species of perennial and annual plants found mostly in North America in diverse habitats from alpine tundra to open woodland and prairie. Some flower in spring, others in summer and autumn....
known by the common name spreading phlox. It 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...
to the southwestern United States to the Dakotas
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, where it grows in many types of habitat, including rocky, high elevation mountain slopes. It is a very compact mat-forming perennial
Perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
herb
Herbaceous plant
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
growing in cushions or patches of short, decumbent stems. The linear, lance-shaped, or needle-like leaves are no more than 1.5 centimeters long and are oppositely arranged in bundles on the short stems. 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 solitary tubular flower around a centimeter long. It has a flat white or pale pink or blue corolla with five lobes each just under a centimeter in length.