Eriogonum maculatum
Encyclopedia
Eriogonum maculatum is a species of wild buckwheat
known by the common name spotted buckwheat. It is native to western North America from Washington to Baja California
to Utah
, where it can be found in a number of habitats, often in abundance.
The branching inflorescence
holds many clusters of bright red and white striped flowers. Each flower is a few millimeters wide with distinctly cup-shaped tepal
s which are covered in minute spiky glands. The bright striping on the small tepals make the flower cluster look spotted from afar, hence its common name.
Eriogonum
Eriogonum is the scientific name for a genus of flowering plants, in the family Polygonaceae. The genus is found in North America and is known as wild buckwheat. This is a highly species-rich genus, and indications are that active speciation is continuing...
known by the common name spotted buckwheat. It is native to western North America from Washington to Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...
to Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, where it can be found in a number of habitats, often in abundance.
Description
This is an erect annual herb reaching heights of anywhere from 5 to 40 centimeters. Most of the woolly leaves are located at the base of the plant, but there may be a few along the stem.The branching inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
holds many clusters of bright red and white striped flowers. Each flower is a few millimeters wide with distinctly cup-shaped tepal
Tepal
Tepals are elements of the perianth, or outer part of a flower, which include the petals or sepals. The term tepal is more often applied specifically when all segments of the perianth are of similar shape and color, or undifferentiated, which is called perigone...
s which are covered in minute spiky glands. The bright striping on the small tepals make the flower cluster look spotted from afar, hence its common name.