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Eriogonum ericifolium - Yavapai County buckwheat

Scientific Family
Polygonaceae
Synonyms
Eriogonum mearnsii, E. microthecum subsp. ericifolium, E. microthecum subsp. mearnsii
Other common names
Yavapai County wild buckwheat
Yavapai buckwheat
heather-leaf wild buckwheat
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Perennial
Similar species
Eriogonum var. pulchrum
Height
6 inches
Riparian
No

Small subshrub, woody, bare stemmed 1/4 of plant high; rounded flower clusters at ends of branches, white to pink to pinkish-purple. Rare and localized, known only from the Verde River Valley of Yavapai County.

Subshrubs; stems densely hairy, woody above ground, many branched from base, tends to branch in 2s; leaves narrow, very hairy on upper surface; flowers not stemmed, in round clusters, white to pink to pinkish-purple; bracts 5-toothed, protruding stamens.

Habitat

Gravelly or rocky slopes of lacustrine (deposits made in lake beds) silt, mixed grasslands, chaparral and oak-woodlands.

Plant Community
Grasslands
Interior Chaparral
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Low elevation
3000
High elevation
6500

Flower Characteristics

Flower clusters at ends of branches, white to pink to pinkish-purple, smooth; 3 bracts, scalelike; tepals in pair of whorls, those of outer whorl rounded, 1/16 inch wide, those of inner whorl narrower; stamens slightly protruding, 1/16 inch long.

Flower color
White to pink to pinkish-purple
Flower shape
Regular
Tubular
No
First bloom month
August
Last bloom month
October
Flower clusters
Rounded

Leaf and Stem Characteristics

Stems spreading to erect, woody, densely hairy; bare stems to 1/4 height of plant; branches in 2s. Narrow leaves, 1/4 to 1/2 inch long, densely hairy upper surface, margins rolled back towards underside, basal and bundled or single on stems.

Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Green
Leaf shape
Narrow
Leaf margin
Smooth
Leaf attachment
Basal & Alternate
Leaves clasp
No
Leaf hairs
Leaves & stems
Spines
No

Fruit and Seed Characteristics

Light brown achenes, 1/16 inch, smooth, except for projecting beak.

Fruit type
Achene
Fruit color
Light brown