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Penstemon calycosus

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Plant species in the plantain family

Penstemon calycosus
Conservation status

Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Penstemon
Species: P. calycosus
Binomial name
Penstemon calycosus
Small
Synonyms
  • Penstemon laevigatus subsp. calycosus (Small) R.W.Benn.
  • Penstemon laevigatus var. calycosus (Small) Farw.
  • Penstemon smallii var. calycosus (Small) Krautter

Penstemon calycosus, commonly called long-sepal beardtongue, is a species of plant in the plantain family (Plantaginaceae). It is native to eastern North America, where it native to the Upper South and Midwestern United States. It expanded its range into the northeast United States in the early 20th century. Its natural habitat is in open woodlands, prairies, and bluffs, often over limestone.

Description

Penstemon calycosus is an herbaceous plant with stems that grow to between 40–120 cm (16–47 in) in height, though usually more than 60 cm (24 in). The stems grow from shallow roots with many branches. It is a relatively long lived perennial, for a penstemon.

Plants have both basal and cauline leaves, those at the base of the plant and ones that sprout from the stems. The basal leaves are present in during the winter months. By the time of flowering the basal leaves have usually withered. The leaves are not leathery in texture and are hairless. The lowest leaves range in length from 4.7–11 cm (1.9–4.3 in). Their edges have irregular teeth and their color is green, though somewhat pale on the underside.

The inflorescence is less than one third the total height of the plant. The flowers are grouped together on the stem in two to five clusters each with two paired cymes at each node. Each cyme has a bract under it and one to fifteen flowers.

Penstemon calycosus has some of the largest and showiest flowers of the penstemons native to the eastern United States. They measure 2.0–3.5 cm (0.79–1.38 in) long with a diameter of 0.8–1.1 cm (0.31–0.43 in). Externally the flowers are pale lavender to violet with faint nectar guides. It blooms in late spring and early summer, early in May to early in July depending on location.

Penstemon calycosus is similar to the more widespread Penstemon digitalis. P. calycosus can be distinguished from P. digitalis by its purple flowers and longer, attenuate sepals.

Taxonomy

In 1898 Penstemon calycosus was named and scientifically described by John Kunkel Small. The species was described from specimens collected by Eugene P. Bicknell on bluffs near the Cumberland River outside Nashville, Tennessee.

Names

In English it is known by the common names of long-sepal penstemon or long-sepal beardtongue. In the plant trade it is occasionally called calico penstemon.

Range and habitat

Penstemon calycosus is widespread in the eastern half United States and is also found in a small part of Canada. In the southeastern United States it is native to the District of Columbia, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. Reports of it in Maryland are specifically listed as erroneous by Plants of the World Online. In the midwest it has been reported in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Ohio. In the northeast it is native in the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is an introduced species in New York state. In Canada it is only known from the province of Ontario. The botanist Francis W. Pennell reported that its range increased in the northeast during the early 20th century in central New York and the lower Connecticut Valley.

It grow in a variety of habitats including forests, meadows, rocky slopes, and along stream banks. It grows on sandy or loam soild and prefers calcareous soils, those with a large limestone or chalk component.

Conservation

The status of Penstemon calycosus was last evaluated by NatureServe in 1988. At that time they evaluated the species as secure (G5) at the global level. They also take an alternate view of the where the species has been introduced, listing not only Ontario, but also all of New England except for Massachusetts as non-native as well as New Jersey. They list it as apparently secure (S4) in Kentucky and imperiled (S2) in Michigan. They also found it to be probably locally extinct in Virginia and Georgia.

See also

List of Penstemon species

References

  1. ^ NatureServe (2024). "Penstemon calycosus". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  2. ^ "Penstemon calycosus Small". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  3. ^ Freeman, Craig C. (29 July 2020) . "Penstemon calycosus". Flora of North America. p. 197. ISBN 978-0190868512. OCLC 1101573420. Archived from the original on 6 November 2024. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  4. ^ Pennell, Francis W. (1919). "Penstemon calycosus". Addisonia: colored illustrations and popular descriptions of plants. 4 (2). Illustrated by Mary Emily Eaton. New York Botanical Garden: Plate 136, 31–32. Archived from the original on 4 March 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  5. "Penstemon calycosus". Wolfe Lab Penstemon Database. Ohio State University. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  6. ^ Pennell, Francis W. (1935). The Scrophulariaceae of Eastern Temperate North America. Monographs, Number 1 (First ed.). Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. pp. 213–217. OCLC 602856875. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  7. Tennessee Flora Committee (2015). Guide to the Vascular Plants of Tennessee (First ed.). Knoxville, Tennessee: University of Tennessee Press. p. 625. ISBN 978-1-62190-136-5. LCCN 2014023329. OCLC 881518511.
  8. Hilty, John. "Long-Sepal Penstemon (Penstemon calycosus)". Illinois Wildflowers. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  9. "Penstemon calycocus [sold as Calico Penstemon]". Purdue Arboretum Explorer. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
Taxon identifiers
Penstemon calycosus
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