Penstemon barbatus var. barbatus

Plant Information
Species: 
barbatus
Species Authority: 
(Cav.) Roth
Variety: 
barbatus
Subgenus: 
Habroanthus
Section: 
Elmigera
Habit:
 
herbaceous perennial
Habit Woodiness:
 
herb
Lifespan: 
short-lived
Plant Height - Min: 
3.00dm
Plant Height - Max: 
10.00dm
Habitat Description: 
Dry hillsides in pinyon-juniper, Gambel oak, and ponderosa pine communities.
Distribution Range: 
South parts of Utah and Colorado, south through north and east Arizona, New Mexico, and Tran-pecos Texas to Mexico.
Elevation - Min: 
1600.00m
Elevation - Max: 
2500.00m
Other Notes: 

"Typical P. barbatus with a densely yellow-bearded palate is the common form in Mexico. Northward in the United States, however, the occurrence of bearded forms gradually decreases along with a gradual decrease in the amount of pubescence. Most plants in the northern part of its distribution bear glabrous palates and are referable to var. torreyi. A third variety, var. trichander, has varying degrees of pubescence on the anthers. The concept that this variety originated through introgression of woolly anthered P. strictus genes into P. barbatus was proposed nearly simultaneously by G. Moore and Crosswhite. Crosswhite observed that the distribution of var. trichander coincides with the region of overlap between P. barbatus var. torreyi and P. strictus." From Holmgren 1984 (Intermountain Flora).

All photos by Andi Wolfe ©2015 - If you would like to use any of these photos, contact Andi Wolfe at Ohio State University.

First Bloom: 
June
Last Bloom: 
October
Chromosome Number: 
2n = 16
References: 
Holmgren NH. 1984. Penstemon and Keckiella. In Intermountain Flora, vol. 4. Ed. Arthur Cronquist et al. Bronx: The New York Botanical Garden.