Lewisia disepala

Lewisia disepala
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Portulacaceae
Genus:	Lewisia
Species:	L. disepala
Binomial name
*Lewisia disepala* Rydb.

Lewisia disepala is a species of flowering plant in the purslane family known by the common name Yosemite lewisia.

Description

Lewisia disepala is a petite perennial herb growing from a thick branching taproot and short caudex unit. It produces a basal rosette of many small leaves no more than 1.5 centimeters long. The leaves are thick, fleshy, hairless, deep shiny green, and club-shaped, knobby, or finger-like, clumped tightly together. The inflorescence has a stem so short that the flowers sit directly on the basal rosette of leaves, or among them. Each flower has 5 to 8 pale to bright pink oval petals and 15 protruding stamens.

Distribution

Lewisia disepala is endemic to the Sierra Nevada of California, where it is known from several sites high in the mountains. It grows in rocky mountain habitat such as talus and open beds of bare gravel.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/19/2012. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.