| TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993) |
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©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California
For up-to-date information about California vascular plants, visit the Jepson eFlora. |
AND IS MAINTAINED FOR ARCHIVAL PURPOSES ONLY |
Annual, perennial herb, subshrub, or vine
Leaves simple, generally in a basal rosette (sometimes cauline), entire or lobed
Inflorescence: panicle, head, raceme, or cyme, generally ± scapose
Flower bisexual, radial, generally small; calyx tubular, often membranous or partly scarious, lobes 5; petals 5, nearly free to ± fused, clawed, ± twisted together; stamens 5, opposite petals, sometimes epipetalous; ovary superior, generally 5-lobed or -ribbed, chamber and ovule 1, styles 5, sometimes fused
Fruit: utricle, achene, or capsule, ± enclosed in persistent calyx
Genera in family: ± 12 genera, ± 400 species: ± worldwide, especially Medit, w&c Asia; some cultivated as ornamental (Limonium used as dried flower)
Reference: [Channell & Wood 1959 J Arnold Arbor 40:391–397]
Perennial (rarely annual); rhizome ± woody
Leaves few–several, oblanceolate to obovate, entire or lobed, generally petioled
Inflorescence: panicle, branched ± from plant base, often ending in (but ± open between) 1-sided, spike-like clusters; involucre 0, other bracts subtending individual flowers and along axes
Flower: calyx generally 5–10-ribbed; styles 5, ± free
Species in genus: ± 150 species: ± worldwide, often in saline soils
Etymology: (Greek: meadow, from habitat of many species)
Reference: [Kunkel & Sunding 1967 Cuad de Bot Mus Canar 2:9–18]
| Introduced |
Leaf: blade 5–12 cm, < petiole, ovate to oblong-ovate, entire, base tapered
Inflorescence > 1 m; axes glabrous, wings 2, wide, leaf-like, veiny, not prolonged at branch points
Flower: calyx tube 5–6 mm, glabrous, lobes blue-purple; corolla lobes white
Ecology: Uncommon. Disturbed urban areas, coastal lagoons
Elevation: ± 10 m.
Bioregional distribution: South Coast
Distribution outside California: native to Canary Islands