Stemodia durantifolia
Encyclopedia
Stemodia durantifolia is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family
known by the common name whitewoolly twintip. It is native to parts of the Americas, including Mexico and the deserts of California
and Arizona
. It grows in riparian
habitat. It is a perennial herb producing a hairy, glandular, erect stem 10 to 50 centimeters tall. The toothed lance-shaped leaves are found in pairs or triplets at stem nodes, their bases often clasping the stem. The inflorescence
is a raceme
of violet flowers, each centimeter-long corolla held in a calyx of hairy, pointed sepal
s. The plant can be seen in bloom throughout most of the year.
Plantaginaceae
Plantaginaceae Juss. or plantain family, are a family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales. The type genus is Plantago L..In older classifications it used to be the only family of the order Plantaginales, but numerous phylogenetic studies, summarized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, have...
known by the common name whitewoolly twintip. It is native to parts of the Americas, including Mexico and the deserts of 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...
. It grows in riparian
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
habitat. It is a perennial herb producing a hairy, glandular, erect stem 10 to 50 centimeters tall. The toothed lance-shaped leaves are found in pairs or triplets at stem nodes, their bases often clasping the stem. 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 raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of violet flowers, each centimeter-long corolla held in a calyx of hairy, pointed sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s. The plant can be seen in bloom throughout most of the year.