Eriogonum fasciculatum (California buckwheat)

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Eriogonum fasciculatum Benth.

California buckwheat, Eastern mojave buckwheat

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Caryophyllidae	Cacti, many other succulents, carnivorous plants, and leadworts
Order	Caryophyllales	Includes cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and many carnivorous plants
Family	Polygonaceae	Knotweed or smartweed family
Genus	Eriogonum	From Greek erion, “wool,” and gonu, “joint or knee,” for the hairy or woolly joints in the stems of some of these species
Species	fasciculatum	Derived from a Latin word meaning “bundles” and describing the way the leaves are attached to the leaf stem in little bunches or “fascicles”

About plant names...

California buckwheat is a native southwestern shrub, inhabiting scrubby hillsides, chaparral, and dry washes. Several hardy cultivars are favored for landscaping.

Plants: Shrubs are tough, woody, disheveled and somewhat shabby looking, a thickly clustered mixture of dead and living branches. It may form a compact mat or approach 6½' (2 m) in height and up to 9½' (3 m) across.

Leaves: Leaves grow in clusters from stem joints. Each leaf is ⅛-½" (6-15 mm) long. They are narrow, about ¹/₃₂-⅛" (0.5-4 mm) wide, with woolly undersides, and folded under. They are waxy and green to retain moisture, and during the hottest part of the year, many drop off as further protection against moisture loss. Plants that shed leaves against the heat are drought deciduous.

Flowers: Flowers are ball-shaped clusters of white and pink, at the end of long stems. They resemble pom-poms. Individual flowers are about ⅛" (3 mm) across, and flowerheads are about 1-6" (2.5-15 cm) in diameter. The individual flowers have six white or sometimes pale pink petals. Long white stamens are tipped with dark pink anthers. Buds are dark pink, and old flowers are red-brown. Flowers appear from March to June.

Fruits: Light brown to brown, ~¹/₁₆" (1.8-2.5 mm).

Online References:

The Natural History of Orange County, California

Calscape.org

Www.americansouthwest.net

SEINet—the Southwest Environmental Information Network

The Jepson Manual

5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park
≈ 19 × 14" (47 × 34 cm)

5/2/2018 · Indian Cove, Joshua Tree National Park, Joshua Tree, California
≈ 8 × 6" (21 × 16 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

5/3/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 6 × 10" (16 × 24 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 6 × 4" (14 × 10 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 5 × 4" (13 × 11 cm)

5/3/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 10 × 15" (26 × 39 cm)

5/3/2018 · Barker Dam, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 7 × 4½" (18 × 12 cm)

5/3/2018 · Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 21 × 14" (52 × 34 cm)

5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park
≈ 21 × 14" (52 × 34 cm)

Eriogonum fasciculatum description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 11 Oct 2021.

5/2/2018 · Indian Cove, Joshua Tree National Park, Joshua Tree, California
≈ 4 × 3½" (10 × 9.2 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 4 × 6" (11 × 16 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 5 × 3½" (13 × 9.2 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 2 × 2" (5.4 × 6 cm)

5/2/2018 · Indian Cove, Joshua Tree National Park, Joshua Tree, California
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

5/3/2018 · Barker Dam, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 7 × 5" (17 × 13 cm)

5/4/2018 · Hidden Valley, Joshua Tree National Park
≈ 31 × 21" (78 × 52 cm)

5/2/2018 · Indian Cove, Joshua Tree National Park, Joshua Tree, California
≈ 2½ × 2½" (6.8 × 6.5 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 4 × 3" (10 × 8.3 cm)

5/2/2018 · Indian Cove, Joshua Tree National Park, Joshua Tree, California
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 5 × 3½" (12 × 9.1 cm)

5/3/2018 · Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park, California
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

Range:

About this map...