''Calyptridium monandrum'',

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are al ...

''Cistanthe monandra'', is a species of flowering plant in the family

Montiaceae Montiaceae are a family of flowering plants, comprising about 14 genera with about 230 known species, ranging from small herbaceous plants to shrubs. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution. The family Montiaceae was newly adopted in the AP ...

known by the common name common pussypaws. The plant is native to the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

, and adjacent

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

, where it grows in sandy areas such as deserts and coastal and mountain scrub habitats.

Description

''Calyptridium monandrum'' is a fleshy, flat annual herb producing short stems which extend along the ground or spread upright from a small

taproot A taproot is a large, central, and dominant root from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the carrot, the taproo ...

. Thick, spoon-shaped leaves occur in a basal rosette at the base of the stem, reaching up to about 5 cm in length. There are smaller leaves along the stems. Small

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...

s sprout from the stem bearing many flowers, each with fleshy, triangular

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...

s and three pink or red petals only a few millimeters long. The fruit is a translucent, oblong capsule up to six millimeters long containing several shiny, black seeds.

References

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment: ''Calyptridium monandrum''''Cistanthe monandra'' — U.C. Photo gallery
Montiaceae Flora of California Flora of Baja California Flora of Arizona Flora of Nevada Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Flora of the California desert regions Flora of the Sonoran Deserts Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of the Central Valley (California) Natural history of the Colorado Desert Natural history of the Mojave Desert Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges Natural history of the Santa Monica Mountains Natural history of the Transverse Ranges {{Caryophyllales-stub