Mimulus guttatus
Encyclopedia
Mimulus guttatus, the Common monkey-flower, is a yellow bee-pollinated
annual or perennial herbaceous wildflower that grows along the banks of streams and seeps in western North America.
in that there is room to treat some of its forms as different species by some definitions. Mimulus guttatus is 10 to 80 cm tall with disproportionately large, 20 to 40 mm long, tubular flowers. The perennial form spreads with stolons or rhizomes. The stem may be erect or recumbent. In the latter form, roots may develop at leaf nodes. Sometimes dwarfed, it may be hairless or have some hairs. Leaves are opposite, round to oval, usually coarsely and irregularly toothed or lobed. The bright yellow flowers are born on a raceme
, most often with five or more flowers. The calyx has five lobes that are much shorter than the flower. Each flower has bilateral symmetry and has two lips. The upper lip usually has two lobs; the lower, three. The lower lip may have one large to many small red to reddish brown spots. The opening to the flower is hairy.
, alpine meadows
, serpentine barrens
, and even on the toxic tailings of copper mines. It is sometimes aquatic
, its herbage floating in small bodies of water.
Mimulus guttatus has been a model organism for studies of evolution and ecology. There may be as many as 1000 scientific papers focused on this species. The genome is (as of 2008) being studied in depth.http://www.mimulusevolution.org/
trade and available as an ornamental plant
for: traditional garden
s; natural landscape
, native plant
, and habitat gardens.
Pollinator
A pollinator is the biotic agent that moves pollen from the male anthers of a flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish fertilization or syngamy of the female gamete in the ovule of the flower by the male gamete from the pollen grain...
annual or perennial herbaceous wildflower that grows along the banks of streams and seeps in western North America.
Description
A highly variable plant, taking many forms, it is a species complexCryptic species complex
In biology, a cryptic species complex is a group of species which satisfy the biological definition of species—that is, they are reproductively isolated from each other—but whose morphology is very similar ....
in that there is room to treat some of its forms as different species by some definitions. Mimulus guttatus is 10 to 80 cm tall with disproportionately large, 20 to 40 mm long, tubular flowers. The perennial form spreads with stolons or rhizomes. The stem may be erect or recumbent. In the latter form, roots may develop at leaf nodes. Sometimes dwarfed, it may be hairless or have some hairs. Leaves are opposite, round to oval, usually coarsely and irregularly toothed or lobed. The bright yellow flowers are born on a raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
, most often with five or more flowers. The calyx has five lobes that are much shorter than the flower. Each flower has bilateral symmetry and has two lips. The upper lip usually has two lobs; the lower, three. The lower lip may have one large to many small red to reddish brown spots. The opening to the flower is hairy.
Distribution
Both annual and perennial forms occur throughout the species' range. It is found in a wide range of habitats including the splash zone of the Pacific Ocean, the geysers of Yellowstone National ParkYellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
, alpine meadows
Alpine climate
Alpine climate is the average weather for a region above the tree line. This climate is also referred to as mountain climate or highland climate....
, serpentine barrens
Serpentine soil
A serpentine soil is derived from ultramafic rocks, in particular serpentinite, a rock formed by the hydration and metamorphic transformation of ultramafic rock from the Earth's mantle....
, and even on the toxic tailings of copper mines. It is sometimes aquatic
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
, its herbage floating in small bodies of water.
Mimulus guttatus has been a model organism for studies of evolution and ecology. There may be as many as 1000 scientific papers focused on this species. The genome is (as of 2008) being studied in depth.http://www.mimulusevolution.org/
Cultivation
Mimulus guttatus is cultivated in the specialty horticultureHorticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
trade and available as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
for: traditional garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
s; natural landscape
Natural landscaping
.Natural landscaping, also called native gardening, is the use of native plants, including trees, shrubs, groundcover, and grasses which are indigenous to the geographic area of the garden.-Maintenance:...
, native plant
California native plants
California native plants are plants that existed in California prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists in the late 18th century...
, and habitat gardens.