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Aquilegia chaplinei
Aquilegia chaplinei, also known as Chaplin's columbine, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to the arid Guadalupe and Sacramento Mountains of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico in the West South Central United States. A perennial plant with an average height of 40 centimeters (16 in), A. chaplinei is characterized as a dwarf version of its close relative Aquilegia chrysantha and is sometimes considered a variant of this species under the name Aquilegia chrysantha var. chaplinei.
A. chaplinei's leaves are in a basal arrangement (sprouting from base of the shoot) and give the plant a fern-like appearance when not flowering. Its flowers are pale yellow. It is named for William Ridgley Chapline, the first person to collect the plant and who collected the holotype from Sitting Bull Falls in New Mexico in 1916.
In 1946, American botanist Philip A. Munz wrote that he was unaware of A. chaplinei being available for sale. As of 2003, both seeds and plants were sometimes available, particularly from native plant nurseries in the region of A. chaplinei's native range.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center identified fully shaded or partially shaded locations as good locations for planting to prevent stressing the plant and curling in the leaves. A. chaplinei requires both moisture and drainage. In particularly hot and arid settings, the plant becomes susceptible to aphids and spider mites. Aquilegia species hybridize easily, so spacing between different species and varieties is necessary to prevent cross pollination. Plants reach maturity in between two and five years.
The species is endemic to the Guadalupe Mountains of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico in the West South Central United States. It is also native to the New Mexican Sacramento Mountains, though this population of yellow columbines is distinct from others in the region In 1984, the Sacramento Mountains population was described as "somewhat intermediary between A. chaplinei and A. chrysantha" by the New Mexico Native Plant Advisory Committee. The New Mexican range of A. chaplinei extends across the counties of Eddy and Otero.
The Apache people considered the plant medicinal. Apaches utilized boiled roots as a remedy for bruises. In order to tone their bodies, they made a tea with the plant. The medicinal qualities of the plant's seed were considered especially significant and were further believed to be an aphrodisiac. Ingestion of the plant may result in stomach irritation.
Aquilegia alpina · Aquilegia amaliae · Fan Columbine · Aquilegia apuana · Aquilegia aradanica · Aquilegia aragonensis · Dark Columbine · Aquilegia atrovinosa · Atwood's Columbine · Aquilegia aurea · Aquilegia ballii · Aquilegia baluchistanica
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Aquilegia chaplinei by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
