Penstemon palmeri (Palmer’s penstemon)

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Penstemon palmeri A. Gray

Palmer’s penstemon

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Plantaginaceae	Plantains
Genus	Penstemon	“Beard-tongues,” a reference to flower shape
Species	palmeri	After Edward Palmer (1829-1911) (From Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, June 11, 1867)

About plant names...

Palmer’s penstemon is native to the American southwest. It is found along roadsides, in canyons and washes, in creosote scrub and in juniper woodlands, at elevations between 3609-7546′ (1.1-2.3 km).

Plants: 1½-6½′ (50-200 cm) in height. Though most penstemons lack a detectable odor, this one has fragrance.

Leaves: Usually opposite, toothed. Leaves are sparse on the stem, and fused to it.

Flowers: On spikes (panicles atop the plant. Each flower is tubular, with five lobes, two above, three below. There is a central yellowish staminode that looks like a diminutive bottle brush. Flowers are white, pink, or rarely red, with red stripes. The flowers usually point in the same direction. They appear from May to June, or in some areas, as long as March to September.

Fruits: Not mentioned even in the Jepson Herbarium Flora, so apparently inconspicuous.

Online References:

Wildflowers, Ferns & Trees of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah

Www.americansouthwest.net

Botanyphoto.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca

Inside.ewu.edu

Southeastern Arizona Wildflowers and the Plants of the Sonoran Desert

Wikimedia Commons (photos)

The Jepson Manual

4/30/2018 · Kelbaker Road, Mojave National Preserve, California · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm)

6/2/2009 · Middle Emerald Falls Trail, Zion National Park, Utah · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (11 × 17 cm)

4/30/2018 · Kelbaker Road, Mojave National Preserve, California · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 15 cm)

Penstemon palmeri description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

6/2/2009 · Zion National Park, Utah · ≈ 3 × 5″ (8.2 × 12 cm) ID is uncertain

4/30/2018 · Kelbaker Road, Mojave National Preserve, California · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 20 cm)

4/30/2018 · Kelbaker Road, Mojave National Preserve, California · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 20 cm)

4/30/2018 · Kelbaker Road, Mojave National Preserve, California · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)

Range: Zones 6-10:

About this map...