Desert Indian Paintbrush

Castilleja chromosa or angustifolia

Desert Indian Paintbrush, Castilleja chromosa or angustifolia

Color: Red-orange

Common name: Desert Indian Paintbrush

Latin name: Castilleja chromosa or angustifolia

Family: OROBANCHACEAE

Height: 12 to 18 inches

Description: Castilleja chromosa/angustifolia has bristly gray-green to purple-red herbage. What looks to be flowers are actually the colourful red-orange bracts that hide the tubular yellow-green flowers that have a thin coat of white hairs.

Leaf: The 20–70 mm linear/lance-shaped leaves are lower down the stem from the colourful bracts and are comprised of 3 or 5 narrow fingerlike lobes.

Range: ne San Bernardino Mountains, Great Basin Floristic Province, Mojave Desert

Habitat: Dry sagebrush scrub, pinyon/juniper woodland

Elevation: 1000–3000 m.

Flowering time: May–Sep

Notes: This Desert Indian Paintbrush is not limited to the desert alone, often growing well above the desert and sage landscapes into pinyon/juniper woodlands. It is partially parasitic on the roots of other plants. Castilleja chromosa/angustifolia, 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. There are more than 30 species of Castilleja in California. Distribution outside California: to Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico. This plant was photographed in the San Bernardino Mountains near Cactus Flats with a Canon EOS 30D and 100mm macro lens.

Desert Indian Paintbrush, Castilleja chromosa or angustifolia

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

 

 



 

Share this page on Facebook:


DesertUSA Newsletter -- We send articles on hiking, camping and places to explore, as well as animals, wildflower reports, plant information and much more. Sign up below or read more about the DesertUSA newsletter here. (It's Free.)

The Desert Environment
The North American Deserts
Desert Geological Terms

SEARCH THIS SITE
FREE DESERTUSA NEWSLETTER

Enter Email:


Shop desert store





 
 
 
Copyright © 1996- DesertUSA.com and Digital West Media, Inc. - -