Plant of the Month ~~ June 2013
updated on or about the 1st of each month
Turkish Rugging
- Common Name(s): Turkish Rugging
- Scientific Name: Chorizanthe staticoides
- Family: Polygonaceae, Buckwheat family
- Plant Type: low-growing annual
- Size: less than a foot, spreading
- Common Habitat: grassy slopes, dry and sandy places in Chaparral
Turkish Rugging forms eye-pleasing rosy-colored mats of inflourescence in the dry heat of summer. Blooming occurs from April to July.
The rosy and white flowes grow at the ends of branches and are about a quarter-inch in diameter. Stems have many branches, are brittle and rosy colored. Spatula-shaped leaves form a basal rosette at the beginning of the plant's life but disappear quickly when the flowers come.
The genus name Chorizanthe is Greek for "divided flowers". The species name staticoides is synonomous with Limonium, another type of plant.
Contributed by Liz Baumann
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References:
Wildflowers of the Santa Monica Mountains, by Milt McAuleyFlowering Plants: The Santa Monica Mountains, Coastal and Chaparral Regions of Southern California, by Nancy Dale
Roadside Plants of Southern California, by Thomas J. Belzer
California Native Plants for the Garden, by Carol Bornstein, David Fross, and Bart O'Brien
California Herbal Remedies, by LoLo Westrich