''Eriogonum callistum'' is a rare species of wild buckwheat, known by the common name Tehachapi buckwheat.

Description

''Eriogonum callistum'' is a perennial herb forming a mat of woolly whitish green herbage on a woody base measuring up to 35 centimeters tall and up to 1 m (3 ft.) wide. It grows from a woody

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 taproot ...

and branching

caudex A caudex (: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.pages 456 and 695 In the strict sense of the term, meaning a stem, "caudex" is most ...

. It is covered in rosettes of leaves each up to 5 centimeters long by 2 wide. The blades are coated densely in grayish white silky hairs. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

arises on an erect stem up to 40 or 45 centimeters tall which is whitish and hairy when new and turns reddish as it ages. The inflorescence itself is a cluster of up to 35 flowers a few centimeters wide. The woolly flowers are pink-tinged when in bud and turn bright white when open. The

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s are tipped with yellow or pink anthers. Within genus ''Eriogonum'' this is the only species in the new section named ''Lanocephala'' in subgenus ''Eucycla''.

Distribution and habitat

The perennial herb is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, found only in the southwestern Tehachapi Mountains, in

Kern County Kern County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield, California, Bakersfield. Kern County compris ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. There are an estimated 2000 individuals in existence, in several sites on the eastern

Tejon Ranch Tejon Ranch Company (), based in Lebec, California, is one of the largest private landowners in California. The company was incorporated in 1936 to organize the ownership of a large tract of land that was consolidated from four Mexican land gr ...

, between

Castaic Lake Castaic Lake (Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''Kaštiq'') is a reservoir formed by Castaic Dam on Castaic Creek, in the Sierra Pelona Mountains of northwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, near the town of Castaic, California, C ...

and the

Antelope Valley The Antelope Valley is a valley primarily located in northern Los Angeles County, California, United States and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, Kern County, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated ...

.The Nature Conservancy
/ref>Reveal, J. L

/ref> It is found on the

. It grows in rocky

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

soils in

chaparral Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant plant community, community found primarily in California, southern Oregon, and northern Baja California. It is shaped by a Mediterranean climate (mild wet winters and hot dry summers) and infrequent, high-intens ...

habitat among manzanitas. The plant was only described to science in 2006.Reveal, J. L. (2006). ''Eriogonum callistum'' (Polygonaceae), a new species from the Tehachapi Mountains of California. ''Sida'' 22 857–861

Conservation

''Eriogonum callistum'' is a Critically Imperiled endemic species in California, and is on the California Native Plant Society '' Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants of California'', listed as Seriously Endangered in California.CNPS—California Native Plant Society Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants Detail: ''Eriogonum callistum'' (Tehachapi buckwheat)
. accessed 4.16.2015

References

External links

* ttp://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?where-calrecnum=10575 Calflora Database: ''Eriogonum callistum'' (Tehachapi buckwheat)br>''Eriogonum callistum'' — UC Photos gallery
callistum Endemic flora of California Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of Kern County, California ~ Plants described in 2006 Critically endangered flora of California {{Polygonaceae-stub