White Rhatany
Krameria grayi
Color: Maroon
Common name: White Rhatany
Latin name: Krameria grayi
Family: KRAMERIACEAE
Height: <2 feet
Description: Krameria grayi is covered with dense fine, generally greyish-white or silky hairs. The buds curve upward and the sepals are reflexed (abruptly bent downward or backward.) The flag-like petals are free, generally flat but sometimes rolled or curved.
Leaf: The leaves are narrowly elongate — widest at the basal half often tapered to an acute tip.
Range: Desert
Habitat: Dry, rocky or sandy places, especially on lime soils
Elevation: < 1400 m.
Flowering time: Apr–May
Notes: The plant is partially parasitic, for example on creosote bush, Larrea tridentata. "White ratany is an important forage for all classes of livestock. It is one of the most important browse species for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana) in the Sonoran Desert. Black-tailed jack rabbits (Lepus californicus) rely almost exclusively on white ratany during the winter." Krameria grayi, a dicot, is a shrub that is native to California and is also found outside of California, but is confined to western North America. This photo was taken on April 21, 2011 in the Newberry Mountains, San Bernardino County, California. http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/kragra/all.html
We have an online wildflower field guide that is designed to help you identify desert wildflowers by color, scientific name, region and common name. The pictures are sized to work on the iPod, iPhone, iPad and similar devices. With your iPod or phone you will easily be able to identify wildflowers while in the desert. Links for downloads are on the bottom of the Wildflower Field Guide page.
Photo tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function - usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.
Mojave Desert Wildflowers - This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More...
What's Blooming Now - Check the Wildflower Reports
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