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Penstemon caespitosus
Also called Mat Beardtongue
Penstemon caespitosus, commonly known as mat penstemon, is a summer blooming perennial flower in the large Penstemon genus. It is a widespread plant from near timberline to the foothills in the Southern Rocky Mountains and Colorado Plateau in North America. It is noted for its ground hugging growth habit and as a plant used in xeriscape and rock gardening.
Mat penstemon is amenable to cultivation and is widely grown in both Europe and America as a groundcover especially in rock gardens for xeriscaping. It is recommended by the Royal Horticultural Society for planting in crevice gardens. In comparison to Penstemon thompsoniae and Penstemon teucrioides, it is less sensitive to moisture because it evolved to live in less extreme environments in the Rockies. Though more tolerant of moisture than other mat forming species it is, like most penstemons, susceptible to root rot in poorly draining locations. It is especially intolerant of excess moisture immediately after its blooming period. However, it will grow on clay containing soils in dry conditions and is generally healthier on lean soils low in organic matter. They are quite suitable for a rock garden, but are too vigorously spreading for trough planting with other plants.
Penstemon caespitosus grows in sagebrush scrublands, juniper savannas, openings in pinyon-juniper woodlands, with scrub oak, ponderosa pine woodlands, forb-grass openings in aspen-conifer communities, and in alpine meadows. Their altitude range is from as low as 1,500 meters (4,900 ft) to as high as 3,500 meters (11,500 ft).
Firleaf beardtongue · Stemless beardtongue · Sharpleaf penstemon · Los Alamos beardtongue · Alberta beardtongue · White penstemon · White River Beardtongue · Whitemargin beardtongue · Gilia beardtongue · Penstemon angelicus · Siskiyou beardtongue · Broadbeard beardtongue
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Penstemon caespitosus 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.
