''Extriplex joaquinana'' is a species known by the common name San Joaquin saltbush. It was formerly included in genus '' Atriplex''.

Distribution

It is

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 ...

, where it grows in

alkaline soils Alkali, or Alkaline, soils are clay soils with high pH (greater than 8.5), a poor soil structure and a low infiltration capacity. Often they have a hard calcareous layer at 0.5 to 1 metre depth. Alkali soils owe their unfavorable physi ...

in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and adjacent parts of the Central Valley and eastern Central Coast Ranges.

Description

This is an annual herb growing erect to a maximum height near one meter. The leaves are 1 to 7 centimeters in length, often scaly, green to gray-green in color, and oval to triangular in shape. The leaves are mostly located lower on the erect plant; those further up the stem are reduced in size. The

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 of male flowers are dense, heavy spikes, and the female flowers are held in smaller clusters.

Systematics

The first publication of this taxon was in 1904 by

Aven Nelson Aven Nelson (March 24, 1859 – March 31, 1952) was an American botanist who specialized in plants of the Rocky Mountains. He was one of the founding professors of the University of Wyoming, where he taught for 55 years as professor and served as ...

as ''Atriplex joaquinana'' A.Nelson (in: ''Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington'' 17(12): 99).''Extriplex joaquinana'' at ''Tropicos''
/ref> (It has sometimes been wrongly spelled ''Atriplex joaquiniana''). In 2010, after

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

research,

Elizabeth H. Zacharias Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sc ...

classified it in a new genus ''

Extriplex ''Extriplex'' is a plant genus in the subfamily Chenopodioideae of the family Amaranthaceae. It has been described in 2010 and comprises two species, that were formerly included in genus ''Atriplex''. They are restricted to the California Flori ...

'', as ''Extriplex joaquinana'' (A.Nelson) E.H.Zacharias. ''Extriplex joaquinana'' belongs to the tribe

Atripliceae Atripliceae are a tribe of the subfamily Chenopodioideae belonging to the plant family Amaranthaceae. ''Atriplex'' is the largest genus of the tribe. Species of Atripiceae are ecologically important in steppe and semi-desert climates. Distribu ...

in the subfamily Chenopodioideae of

Amaranthaceae Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus '' Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, making i ...

References

Elizabeth H. Zacharias, Bruce G. Baldwin (2010): ''A Molecular Phylogeny of North American Atripliceae (Chenopodiaceae), with Implications for Floral and Photosynthetic Pathway Evolution''. In: ''Systematic Botany'' 35(4), p.839-857.

External links

*
USDA Plants Profile for ''Atriplex joaquinana''''Atriplex joaquinana'' — UC Photo gallery
Chenopodioideae Endemic flora of California Halophytes Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of the Central Valley (California) ~ Plants described in 1904 Taxa named by Aven Nelson Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Amaranthaceae-stub