Eriogonum elatum

Douglas ex Bentham

Trans. Linn. Soc. London 17: 413. 1836.

Endemic
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 5. Treatment on page 315. Mentioned on page 226, 229, 235.

Herbs, erect, not scapose, 4–8(–15) × 1–4 dm, glabrous or villous. Stems erect, without persistent leaf bases, up to 1/5 height of plant; caudex stems absent; aerial flowering stems erect, slender to stout, solid or hollow, infrequently fistulose, 1.5–4(–8) dm, glabrous, tomen-tose, or villous. Leaves basal; petiole 5–25 cm, villous; blade lanceolate to lance-ovate, 4–15(–25) × 1.5–6 cm, loosely villous and green on both surfaces or infrequently thinly tomentose abaxially and glabrate adaxially, margins plane. Inflorescences cymose, 15–50 × 10–30 cm; branches glabrous or villous; bracts 3, semileaflike, linear, and 5–30 × 2–5 mm proximally, scalelike, triangular, and 1–4 mm distally. Peduncles absent or slender, erect, 0.5–4 cm, glabrous or tomentose. Involucres 1 per node or 2–5 per cluster, turbinate, (2.5–)3–4 × 2.5–3 mm, glabrous or slightly tomentose; teeth 5, erect, 0.4–0.9 mm. Flowers 2.5–4 mm, glabrous; perianth white; tepals connate proximal 1/4, monomorphic, obovate; stamens exserted, 2.5–4 mm; filaments pilose proximally. Achenes light brown, 3.5–4 mm, glabrous.

Distribution

V5 634-distribution-map.gif

Calif., Idaho, Nev., Oreg., Wash.

Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Eriogonum elatum is widely distributed but rather scattered throughout its range. The plants are occasionally seen in the garden. Inflorescence branches were chewed or made into an infusion and taken as a physic by some Native American people (D. E. Moerman 1986).

Selected References

None.

Key

1 Flowering stems and inflorescence branches gla- brous Eriogonum elatum var. elatum
1 Flowering stems and inflorescence branches villous Eriogonum elatum var. villosum