''Plagiobothrys'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s known commonly as popcorn flowers. These are small

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

s which bear tiny white or yellow flowers. Their fruits are

nutlet A nut is a fruit consisting of a hard or tough nutshell protecting a kernel which is usually edible. In general usage and in a culinary sense, a wide variety of dry seeds are called nuts, but in a botanical context "nut" implies that the sh ...

s. Although these plants are found predominantly in North America and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the souther ...

, five

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

are known from Australia. Of the approximately 65 species described, more than 15 are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

Description

The inflorescence is coiled in bud, but generally elongates in fruit. The pedicels are generally 0–1 mm, and the flower is bisexual with the sepals fused below the middle.

Etymology

The genus name, ''Plagiobothrys'', is derived from Greek to mean "sideways pit" and describes the position of nutlet attachment scar.

Selected species

*''

Plagiobothrys acanthocarpus ''Plagiobothrys acanthocarpus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name adobe popcornflower. It is native to California and northwestern sections of Mexico, where it can be found in moist areas on clay soil, ...

'' - adobe popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys arizonicus ''Plagiobothrys arizonicus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Arizona popcornflower. Distribution The plant is native to the southwestern United States, California, and Sonora (Mexico). It is a common ...

'' - Arizona popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys austiniae ''Plagiobothrys austiniae'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Austin's popcornflower. It is native to California, where it can be found in the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada foothills. It is also kn ...

'' - Austin's popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys bracteatus'' - bracted popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys canescens'' - valley popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys chorisianus'' - artist's popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys collinus'' - Cooper's popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys diffusus'' - San Francisco popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys distantiflorus'' - California popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys figuratus ''Plagiobothrys figuratus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name fragrant popcornflower. It is native to western North America from southern British Columbia to south-western Oregon,

'' - fragrant popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys fulvus'' - fulvous popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys glyptocarpus'' - sculptured popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys greenei'' - Greene's popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys hirtus ''Plagiobothrys hirtus'', the rough popcornflower, is a plant species with only about a dozen reportedly extant occurrences, all within the Umpqua River watershed in Douglas County, Oregon. It is federally listed endangered in the United States ...

'' - rough popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys hispidus'' - Cascade popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys humistratus'' - dwarf popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys infectivus ''Plagiobothrys'' is a genus of flowering plants known commonly as popcorn flowers. These are small herbaceous plants which bear tiny white or yellow flowers. Their fruits are nutlets. Although these plants are found predominantly in North Ameri ...

'' - dye popcornflower *'' Plagiobothrys jonesii'' - Mojave popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys kingii ''Amsinkiopsis'' is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the borage family consisting of the species ''Amsinckiopsis kingii'. A. kingii'' was previously considered part of the genus '' Plagiobothrys'', until phylogenetic study proved the ...

'' - Great Basin popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys leptocladus ''Plagiobothrys leptocladus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names finebranched popcornflower and alkali plagiobothrys. It is native to western North America from Alaska to the Dakotas to northern Mexic ...

'' - finebranched popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys mollis ''Plagiobothrys mollis'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name soft popcornflower. It is native to Oregon, Nevada, and the Sierra Nevada of California, where it grows in scrub and grassy habitat, especial ...

'' - soft popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys nothofulvus ''Plagiobothrys nothofulvus'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae known by the common names rusty popcornflower and foothill snowdrops. It is native to western North America from Washington, and California, to northern Mexi ...

'' - rusty popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys parishii ''Plagiobothrys parishii'', known by the common name Parish's popcornflower, is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the Boraginaceae, borage family. Distribution The plant is Endemism, endemic to southeastern California. It is known only ...

'' - Parish's popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys plurisepaleus ''Plagiobothrys plurisepaleus'' (common name - White rochelia) is a species of flowering plant in the borage family. It is native to Australia, being found in all mainland states: New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, We ...

'' *''

Plagiobothrys scouleri ''Plagiobothrys scouleri'' is a common species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Scouler's popcornflower and white forget-me-not. It is native to North America, where it can be found from Alaska throughout southern ...

'' - Scouler's popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys shastensis ''Plagiobothrys shastensis'' is an uncommon species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Shasta popcornflower. It is native to southern Oregon and northern California, where it grows in grassland, woodland, and other ...

'' - Shasta popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys stipitatus ''Plagiobothrys stipitatus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name stalked popcornflower and stipitate forget-me-not. It is native to Oregon and most of California, where it grows in vernal pools and s ...

'' - stalked popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys strictus ''Plagiobothrys strictus'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Calistoga popcornflower. It is endemic to Napa County, California, where it is known from only two small locations near Calistoga. De ...

'' - Calistoga popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys tenellus ''Plagiobothrys tenellus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names Pacific popcornflower and slender popcornflower. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to Mexico, where it is a comm ...

'' - Pacific popcornflower *''

Plagiobothrys uncinatus ''Plagiobothrys uncinatus'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names Salinas Valley popcornflower and hooked popcornflower. It is endemic to the Central Coast Ranges of California, where it is known mainl ...

'' - Salinas Valley popcornflower

References

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment
Flora of North America Boraginaceae genera {{Asterid-stub