Grassland Blazingstar (Mentzelia strictissima)
Description
Plants biennial, candelabra-form. Stems solitary (or multiple as wound response), erect, straight; branches distal, distal longest, antrorse, straight; hairy. Leaves: blade 28-70 - 5.8-17.2 mm, widest intersinus distance 3.4-11.4 mm; proximal oblanceolate, lanceolate, or elliptic, margins dentate to pinnate, teeth or lobes 10-20, perpendicular to leaf axis, 0.9-3.1 mm; distal lanceolate, base usually not clasping, rarely clasping, margins usually dentate, occasionally serrate, teeth 8-18, usually perpendicular to leaf axis, occasionally slightly antrorse, 0.6-5.4 mm; abaxial surface with simple grappling-hook, complex grappling-hook, and needlelike trichomes, adaxial surface with simple grappling-hook and needlelike trichomes. Bracts: margins entire or toothed. Flowers: petals white, 14.7-22(-24.4) - 1.9-4.4 mm, apex acute, glabrous abaxially; stamens white, 5 outermost petaloid, filaments narrowly spatulate, slightly clawed, 13.3-23.1 - 1.3-3.1(-4.4) mm, without anthers, second whorl without anthers; anthers straight after dehiscence, epidermis smooth; styles 7.6-12.9 mm. Capsules cup-shaped to cylindric, 10.2-20.1 - 6.7-9.6 mm, base rounded to occasionally tapering, not longitudinally ridged. Seeds: coat anticlinal cell walls wavy, papillae 3-8 per cell. 2N = 20. Flowering May-Oct. Arid grasslands; 800-1800 m; N.Mex., Tex.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum: Magnoliophyta
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Cornales
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Family: Loasaceae
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Genus: Mentzelia
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