Orthocarpus cuspidatus
Encyclopedia
Orthocarpus cuspidatus is a species of flowering plant in the broomrape family
known by the common name toothed owl's clover. It is native to mountain and plateau habitat in Oregon
, California
, and Nevada
. It is an annual herb producing a slender, glandular, hairy, purple-green stem up to about 40 centimeters tall. The narrow leaves are up to 5 centimeters long, the upper ones deeply divided into three linear lobes. The inflorescence
is a dense cylindrical spike of wide, oval green bract
s with pinkish points. The flowers emerge from between the bracts. Each purple-pink flower is fuzzy in texture and club-shaped, the lower lip an expanded pouch and the upper lip a narrow, straight beak.
Orobanchaceae
Orobanchaceae, the broomrape family, is a family of flowering plants of the order Lamiales, with about 90 genera and more than 2000 species. Many of these genera were formerly included in the family Scrophulariaceae sensu lato...
known by the common name toothed owl's clover. It is native to mountain and plateau habitat in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. It is an annual herb producing a slender, glandular, hairy, purple-green stem up to about 40 centimeters tall. The narrow leaves are up to 5 centimeters long, the upper ones deeply divided into three linear lobes. The 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...
is a dense cylindrical spike of wide, oval green bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
s with pinkish points. The flowers emerge from between the bracts. Each purple-pink flower is fuzzy in texture and club-shaped, the lower lip an expanded pouch and the upper lip a narrow, straight beak.