Scientific Family
Polygonaceae
Synonyms
Eriogonum densum, Eriogonum vimineum var. densum
Other common names
sorrel wild buckwheat
skeleton weed
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Annual
Height
Up to 2 feet
Riparian
No
The small flowers are in clusters along the erect and woolly flower stems. Leaves are oblong and found along the lower stems.
Slender annual, taprooted, erect with leafy stems. Stem leaves smaller than basal, leaves oblong, densely hairy, edges curled under. Pink to white short-stalked flowers in clusters of 10 or fewer along erect stems. Seed pod is a brown 3-sided achene.
Habitat
Found along roadsides and sandy to gravelly washes, flats and slopes. Shrublands, grasslands, oak, pinyon and/or juniper, and montane conifer woodlands.
Plant Community
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Montane Conifer Forest
Interior Chaparral
Grasslands
Disturbed Areas
Desert Scrub
Low elevation
2500
High elevation
7200
Flower Characteristics
Pink to white flowers are borne in loose clusters of 10 or fewer short-stalked flowers held together by cup-shaped whorls of bracts. Each individual flower has 6 ruffled petal-like tepals (sepals and petals).
Flower color
White, pale to dark pink
Flower shape
Bell-shaped
Tubular
No
First bloom month
June
Last bloom month
November
Flower clusters
Elongated
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
The green, oblong leaves are covered with grayish-white hairs on both upper and lower surfaces.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Green
Leaf shape
Round or oval
Leaf margin
Smooth
Leaves clasp
No
Leaf hairs
Leaves & stems
Spines
No
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Achenes are 3-sided and dark brown.
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit color
Brown