Phacelia cookei
Encyclopedia
Phacelia cookei is a rare species of phacelia
known by the common name Cooke's phacelia. It is endemic to Siskiyou County, California
, where it is known from just a few occurrences in the forest and scrub around Mount Shasta
. The substrate in the area is sandy, ashy volcanic soil.
It is an annual herb growing in a small, flat mat or with a short upright stem a few centimeters high. It is blue-green in color, succulent, and lightly hairy. The oval, smooth-edged leaves are one or two centimeters long and borne on short petioles
. The hairy inflorescence
is a one-sided curving or coiling cyme of several tiny bell-shaped flowers. Each flower is white with lavender veining, about half a millimeter wide and no more than 2 millimeters long.
Phacelia
Phacelia is a genus of about 200 species of annual or perennial herbaceous plants, native to North and South America....
known by the common name Cooke's phacelia. It is endemic to Siskiyou County, California
Siskiyou County, California
Siskiyou County is a county located in the far northernmost part of the U.S. state of California, in the Shasta Cascade region on the Oregon border. Yreka is the county seat. Because of its substantial natural beauty, outdoor recreation opportunities, and Gold Rush era history, it is an important...
, where it is known from just a few occurrences in the forest and scrub around Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta is located at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California and at is the second highest peak in the Cascades and the fifth highest in California...
. The substrate in the area is sandy, ashy volcanic soil.
It is an annual herb growing in a small, flat mat or with a short upright stem a few centimeters high. It is blue-green in color, succulent, and lightly hairy. The oval, smooth-edged leaves are one or two centimeters long and borne on short petioles
Petiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
. The hairy 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 one-sided curving or coiling cyme of several tiny bell-shaped flowers. Each flower is white with lavender veining, about half a millimeter wide and no more than 2 millimeters long.