Linanthus is a genus of
annualAn annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
and
perennial plantA perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants...
s in the phlox family
PolemoniaceaeThe Polemoniaceae comprises 18-25 genera with between 270-400 species of mostly annual plants, native to the Northern Hemisphere and also South America, with the center of diversity in western North America, especially in California...
. The species are found in western
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
and in
ChileChile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, with the greatest diversity in
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
.
The stems are erect, with multiple branches arising directly from the base, and grow 2-15 cm tall. The
leavesIn botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin. There is continued debate about whether the flatness of leaves evolved to expose the chloroplasts to more light or to increase the absorption of carbon dioxide. In...
are cauline and opposite, with shapes ranging from entire to palmately lobed, the 3-9 lobes being linear to lanceolate or spatulate.
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Linanthus is a genus of
annualAn annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
and
perennial plantA perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants...
s in the phlox family
PolemoniaceaeThe Polemoniaceae comprises 18-25 genera with between 270-400 species of mostly annual plants, native to the Northern Hemisphere and also South America, with the center of diversity in western North America, especially in California...
. The species are found in western
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
and in
ChileChile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, with the greatest diversity in
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
.
The stems are erect, with multiple branches arising directly from the base, and grow 2-15 cm tall. The
leavesIn botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin. There is continued debate about whether the flatness of leaves evolved to expose the chloroplasts to more light or to increase the absorption of carbon dioxide. In...
are cauline and opposite, with shapes ranging from entire to palmately lobed, the 3-9 lobes being linear to lanceolate or spatulate. Flowers have a tubular
calyxA sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Sepals in most flowers are green and lie under the more conspicuous petals. As a collective unit the sepals form a calyx, whereas the collection of petals is called the corolla...
, and the corolla may be funnel- or bell-shaped, or salverform.
The genus name is from the Greek for "flax flower", the flowers superficially resembling those of
flaxFlax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent. This is called as Agasi/Akshi in Kannada, Jawas/Javas or Alashi in Marathi...
.
The genus has recently been split, with many of the species formerly included now transferred to the genus
LeptosiphonLeptosiphon is a genus of flowering plants in the Polemoniaceae family. Many included species were formerly classified as members of the genus Linanthus...
(Jepson Manual).
Selected species
- Linanthus bellus
Linanthus bellus is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name desert beauty. It is known only from northern Baja California and eastern San Diego County, California, where it grows in high desert chaparral in sandy soils. This is a petite annual herb...
(Gray) Greene
- Linanthus bigelovii
Linanthus bigelovii is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Bigelow's linanthus. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico where it grows mainly in dry habitat, such as the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts. This is an annual herb producing a...
(A. Gray) Greene
- Linanthus concinnus
Linanthus concinnus is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name San Gabriel linanthus. It is endemic to the San Gabriel Mountains in the Los Angeles area, where it occurs in dry, rocky habitat in chaparral and forest habitat. This is a small annual herb producing a...
Milliken
- Linanthus demissus
Linanthus demissus is a small flowering plant found in the Mojave Desert of the southwestern United States, from southeastern California east to Arizona and southern Utah....
(A. Gray) Greene
- Linanthus dianthiflorus
Linanthus dianthiflorus is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common names fringed linanthus and ground pink. It is endemic to southern California, where it can be found in many types of local open habitat, such as chaparral. This is an annual herb producing a very thin,...
(Benth.) Greene
- Linanthus dichotomus
Linanthus dichotomus is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name eveningsnow. It is native to western North America, including most of the southwestern United States, where it is a common member of the flora in a number of habitat types. It is often found on the...
Benth.
- Linanthus filiformis
Linanthus filiformis is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name yellow gilia. It is native to the southwestern United States, where it grows in rocky desert and plateau habitat. This herb produces a threadlike, branching stem not more than about 15 centimeters long...
(Parry ex A. Gray) J.M. Porter & L.A. Johnson
- Linanthus inyoensis
Linanthus inyoensis is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Inyo gilia. It is native to eastern California and western Nevada, where it is a common member of the flora in several types of habitat at the western edge of the Great Basin where it meets the Sierra...
(I.M.Johnst.) J.M.Porter & L.A.Johnson
- Linanthus jonesii
Linanthus jonesii is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Jones' linanthus. It is native to the deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. This is a small annual herb producing a hairy, glandular stem no more than about 15 centimeters tall,...
(A. Gray) Greene
- Linanthus killipii
Linanthus killipii is a rare species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Baldwin Lake linanthus. It is endemic to the San Bernardino Mountains of southern California, where it is known from only a few occurrences in the vicinity of Baldwin Lake near Big Bear...
H. Mason
- Linanthus maculatus
Linanthus maculatus is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common names San Bernardino Mountain gilia and Little San Bernardino Mountains gilia...
(Parish) Milliken
- Linanthus orcuttii
Linanthus orcuttii is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name Orcutt's linanthus. It is known only from southern California and Baja California, where it grows in chaparral and pine forests in the Peninsular Ranges and occasionally the San Bernardino...
(Parry & A. Gray) Jeps.
- Linanthus parryae
Linanthus parryae is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name sandblossoms. It is endemic to California, where it is known from sandy, open habitat types in several regions from the Central Valley to the Sierra Nevada foothills to the Mojave Desert...
(A. Gray) Greene
Species formerly treated in
Linanthus, now transferred to
LeptosiphonLeptosiphon is a genus of flowering plants in the Polemoniaceae family. Many included species were formerly classified as members of the genus Linanthus...
:
- Leptosiphon acicularis
- Leptosiphon ambiguus
- Leptosiphon androsaceus
- Leptosiphon arenicola
- Leptosiphon aureus
- Leptosiphon bicolor
- Leptosiphon bolanderi
- Leptosiphon breviculus
- Leptosiphon ciliatus
- Leptosiphon filipes
- Leptosiphon floribundus
- Leptosiphon grandiflorus
- Leptosiphon harknessii
- Leptosiphon lemmonii
- Leptosiphon liniflorus
- Leptosiphon montanus
- Leptosiphon nudatus
- Leptosiphon nuttallii
- Leptosiphon oblanceolatus
- Leptosiphon pachyphyllus
- Leptosiphon parviflorus
- Leptosiphon pygmaeus
- Leptosiphon rattanii
- Leptosiphon septentrionalis
- Leptosiphon serrulatus