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Brittle spineflower

Chorizanthe brevicornu

Also called Sagebrush Chorizanthe

Brittle spineflower
Photo: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0
Family
Polygonaceae (Buckwheat family)
Grows as
Annual
Native range
SW. U.S.A. to NW. Mexico
Climate
subtropical

About

Chorizanthe brevicornu is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family which is known by the common name brittle spineflower. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it is widely distributed but is most abundant in the deserts. The plant extends an erect, naked, highly branching stem which is greenish in color. Most of the leaves grow from the base of the plant, but a few small ones may appear up on the stem. At the end of each of the many branches is a tube-shaped inflorescence which opens into a tiny white or greenish-yellow flower a few millimeters wide.

Chorizanthe brevicornu relies on wind and small mammals for seed dispersal. The brittle nature of the plant allows the inflorescence to break apart, aiding in spreading seeds across arid landscapes.

Other Chorizanthe plants

Narrowleaf spineflower · Irish Hills Spineflower · Twolobe spineflower · Blakley's spineflower · San Luis Obispo spineflower · Wrinkled spineflower · San Francisco spineflower · Diffuse spineflower · Douglas' spineflower · Fringed spineflower · Mendocino spineflower · Ramona spineflower

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Chorizanthe brevicornu 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.

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