Castilleja angustifolia is a species of hemiparasitic wildflower known by the common names northwestern paintbrush and desert paintbrush. It is an herbaceous perennial native to the desert, scrublands, and woodlands of western North America. It grows in hot sandy soils and rock crevices in dry conditions.
Description
This paintbrush flower is a herbacous plant that grows stems that are usually tall from a woody caudex atop a taproot. It usually has a clump of erect stems, each topped with an inflorescence of somewhat tubular yellow green flowers. The flowers are encased in bright red to orange-red bracts, sometimes tinted with purple, and usually fuzzy with a thin coat of white hairs. The upper leaves and bracts are divided into 3–5 segments, while the lower leaves are undivided, long, and narrow.
The plant flowers from May to September. In areas such as Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, it is often associated with sagebrush. The brightly colored bracts are used to attach pollinators like hummingbirds and butterflies that would otherwise ignore the plant's small yellow green flowers. The centimeter-long capsule fruits contain honeycomb-patterned seeds.
The species is similar to Castilleja linariifolia.
Taxonomy
Castilleja angustifolia was given the scientific name Euchroma angustifolia by Thomas Nuttall in 1834. Four years later in 1838 it was moved to the genus Castilleja by George Don. Together with its genus it is classified in the family Orobanchaceae. It has three accepted varieties.
Castilleja angustifolia var. angustifolia – Northwestern US Castilleja angustifolia var. dubia – Rocky Mountains and South Dakota Castilleja angustifolia var. flavescens – Nevada, Idaho, and Utah
Castilleja angustifolia has twelve synonyms of the species or one of its varieties.
Table of Synonyms Name Year Rank Synonym of: Notes Castilleja angustifolia var. adenophora 1898 variety var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja angustifolia subsp. bradburii 1915 subspecies var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja angustifolia var. bradburii 1898 variety var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja angustifolia var. subcinerea 1916 variety var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja bennittii 1913 species var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja bradburii 1838 species var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja buffumii 1909 species var. angustifolia = het. Castilleja dubia 1909 species var. dubia ≡ hom. Castilleja flavescens 1959 species var. flavescens ≡ hom. Castilleja subcinerea 1913 species var. angustifolia = het. Euchroma angustifolia 1834 species E. angustifolia ≡ hom. Euchroma bradburii 1834 species var. angustifolia = het. Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym; = heterotypic synonym
Names It is known by the common names narrow-leaf paintbrush or northwestern paintbrush. Castilleja angustifolia shares many names with other plant species. For example it is called narrowleaf paintbrush as is Castilleja linariifolia, it is desert paintbrush in southern California, but Castilleja chromosa is frequently known by this name, and both it and Castilleja miniata are called common paintbrush. Like other species in its genus, it is also sometimes simply called paintbrush.
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