Desert Figwort
Scrophularia desertorum
Color: Deep Red
Common name: Desert Figwort
Latin name: Scrophularia desertorum
Family: SCROPHULARIACEAE
Height: 2-4 feet
Description: Desert figwort is a perennial herb producing clusters of erect stems that often exceed one meter tall. The inflorescence is a wide-open panicle with several hairy, glandular branches bearing flowers. The flower has a spherical corolla opening at the top into a hoodlike, lobed mouth. The corolla is just under a centimeter long and is whitish at the base and deep red around the mouth and on the lobes. The sterile stamen is generally visible in the mouth of the corolla.
Leaf: The leaves have toothed, triangular or lance-shaped blades up to 13 centimeters long which are borne on stalks measuring up to 10 centimeters in length.
Range: n Desert Mountains, Sierra Nevada, East of Sierra Nevada,
Habitat: Dry slopes
Elevation: 1000–3000 m.
Flowering time: Apr–Aug
Notes: Scrophularia desertorum, a dicot, is a perennial herb that is native to California and is also found outside of California, but is confined to western North America.
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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The Desert Environment
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