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Butte County checkerbloom

dwarf checkerbloom, harsh checker mallow, harsh checkerbloom

Habit Herbs, perennial, (0.5–)0.8–1.2(–1.8) m, glaucous, with caudex and usually well-developed rhizomes to 0.5 mm diam. Herbs, perennial, 0.1–1(–1.2) m, infrequently ± glaucous, with caudex or not, usually with freely-rooting fibrous rootstocks or rhizomes (5–)10–30 cm × 2–4 mm, matted or not.
Stems

often single, usually scattered, erect, usually unbranched, solid or somewhat hollow in age, proximally densely, finely stellate-hairy, hairs spreading, distally glaucous, glabrous.

usually single, erect and sometimes supported by adjacent plants (sprawling), base prostrate or decumbent-ascending to erect, often rooting, solid, not brittle, sometimes ± glaucous distally, proximally stellate-hairy, glabrate, hairs minute or larger and coarse (never simple only), usually 4-rayed, 0.5–1 mm.

Leaves

cauline, mostly on abaxially, bristly-hirsute adaxially.

basal and/or cauline, similar in size and shape;

stipules linear to lanceolate, 2–3 × 1.1 mm;

petiole (1–)5–10(–15) cm, longest on proximal leaves, 1–4 times longer on proximal leaves to 1/2 times to as long as blade on distal leaves;

blade usually shallowly to deeply palmately 3–7-lobed usually halfway to base, proximal and distal cauline blades rounded to reniform, 2–3 × 2–5 cm, usually wider than long, base cordate to truncate, margins crenate, apex blunt or rounded, lobes narrowest at base, margins usually apically coarsely toothed, rarely entire, surfaces stellate-puberulent.

Inflorescences

erect, open, calyces not conspicuously overlapping except sometimes in bud, usually unbranched, loosely 10+-flowered, flowers 1+ cm apart, elongate, sometimes 1-sided, 30–40(–45) cm;

bracts inconspicuous, lanceolate to linear, distal unlobed, 2–4 mm, proximal divided ± to base, 4–6 mm, usually equaling or shorter than pedicels.

ascending or erect, often spiciform, open, calyces not overlapping in flower or fruit, unbranched or branched, 2–15(–30)-flowered, elongate in both flower and fruit, usually 1-sided, 6–11(–30) cm;

bracts leaflike to linear, usually 2-fid, (2–)3–5(–15) mm.

Pedicels

2–5 mm;

involucellar bractlets absent.

2–5(–10) mm;

involucellar bractlets absent.

Flowers

usually bisexual, sometimes pistillate, plants gynodioecious;

calyx 10–15 mm, uniformly, densely stellate-puberulent;

petals: bisexual pale pink, often drying yellowish, pale-veined or not, base pale pink to white, (15–)20–35 mm, pistillate usually darker purple, base white, 5(–10) mm;

staminal column 6–8 mm, hairy;

anthers white;

stigmas (6 or)7 or 8.

bisexual or unisexual and pistillate, plants gynodioecious;

calyx 5–12 mm, uniformly densely stellate-puberulent;

petals pink to pale purple, pale-veined, (5–)10–28 mm, pistillate flowers darker, 5–15 mm;

staminal column 4–5 mm, stellate-puberulent;

anthers white;

stigmas (6 or)7 or 8.

Seeds

2–2.5 mm.

1.5–2.8 mm.

Schizocarps

6–8 mm diam.;

mericarps (6 or)7 or 8, 3–3.5 mm, usually glabrous or very sparsely glandular-puberulent, distinctly narrowly wing-margined dorsally, sides lightly reticulate-veined, pitted, back less so, mucro 0.3–0.5 mm.

6–8 mm diam.;

mericarps (6 or)7 or 8, 3–4 mm, usually glandular-puberulent to stellate-puberulent, sometimes glabrous, roughened, strongly reticulate-veined, sides and back pitted, mucro 0.5–1 mm.

2n

= 20.

Sidalcea robusta

Sidalcea asprella

Phenology Flowering Apr–May(–Jun).
Habitat Dry banks in chaparral at ecotone with foothill woodlands, often basaltic soil, with Quercus douglasii
Elevation 100–400(–1300) m (300–1300(–4300) ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Of conservation concern.

Sidalcea robusta is one of the taller species of Sidalcea and can be distinguished also by its relatively long inflorescences with widely-spaced, showy flowers, its limited range, and its winged mericarps are notable. Rare and threatened by development, it is known from Butte County in the southern Cascade Range foothills and the northern Sierra Nevada foothills.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

Sidalcea asprella is variable and occurs from the central Sierra Nevada to southwestern Oregon. Typical plants in the central Sierra Nevada have weak, elongated stems that are often supported by neighboring vegetation; they lack simple recurved hairs at the stem base and may have either elongated rhizomes or a caudex. It has been confused with S. celata, S. elegans, S. gigantea, and S. glaucescens; formerly it was included within S. malviflora; molecular study has shown that it is different from S. malviflora. It belongs to a group including S. celata, S. elegans, S. gigantea, and S. hirtipes (K. Andreasen and B. G. Baldwin 2003).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Plants (0.3–)0.5–1(–1.2) m, with caudex or usually compact rootstocks or rhizomes to 10(–30) cm × 4 mm; leaves mostly cauline; inflorescences 8–15 (–30)-flowered, erect; stems erect, sometimes weak and supported by other vegetation, sometimes proximally decumbent.
subsp. asprella
1. Plants 0.1–0.3(–0.4) m, with rhizomes 5–20 cm × 2(–3) mm; leaves mostly basal; inflorescences usually 2–10(–19)-flowered, ascending; stems decumbent-ascending to erect, sometimes proximally prostrate.
subsp. nana
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 353. FNA vol. 6, p. 325.
Parent taxa Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sidalcea
Sibling taxa
S. asprella, S. calycosa, S. campestris, S. candida, S. celata, S. covillei, S. cusickii, S. diploscypha, S. elegans, S. gigantea, S. glaucescens, S. hartwegii, S. hendersonii, S. hickmanii, S. hirsuta, S. hirtipes, S. keckii, S. malachroides, S. malviflora, S. multifida, S. nelsoniana, S. neomexicana, S. oregana, S. pedata, S. ranunculacea, S. reptans, S. setosa, S. sparsifolia, S. stipularis, S. virgata
S. calycosa, S. campestris, S. candida, S. celata, S. covillei, S. cusickii, S. diploscypha, S. elegans, S. gigantea, S. glaucescens, S. hartwegii, S. hendersonii, S. hickmanii, S. hirsuta, S. hirtipes, S. keckii, S. malachroides, S. malviflora, S. multifida, S. nelsoniana, S. neomexicana, S. oregana, S. pedata, S. ranunculacea, S. reptans, S. robusta, S. setosa, S. sparsifolia, S. stipularis, S. virgata
Subordinate taxa
S. asprella subsp. asprella, S. asprella subsp. nana
Synonyms S. asprella var. robusta S. malviflora subsp. asprella
Name authority A. Heller ex Roush: Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 18: 205. (1931) Greene: Bull. Calif. Acad. Sci. 1: 78. (1885)
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