Common Name(s): | Canchalagua |
Scientific Name: | Zeltnera venusta |
Family: | Gentianaceae (Gentian) |
Plant Type: | Annual |
Size: | up to 24 inches |
Habitat: | open chaparral, coastal sage |
Blooms: | May to August |
Fire Response: | Germinate from Seed |
Canchalagua - Zeltnera venusta - native to California - has vibrant pink to magenta hued flowers that will grab your attention. Flowering from May to July, Zeltnera venusta's flowers provide a vivid contrast between itself and the drying grasses and holds its own with the late blooming annuals. Mass blooms will have you reaching for your camera and possibly a thesaurus to find words to describe how pulchritudinous this plant is [alluring, comely]. If you have not seen it before there may be a reason - the plant is sensitive to rainfall and does not always germinate every year. Best places to observe this plant? Openings of chaparral and coastal sage scrub - Upper Solstice Canyon is where these images were captured. Canchalagua is the only representative of the Gentian family in the Santa Monica Mountains. Traits of this family are: 4 or 5 separate sepals, 4 or 5 united petals and 4 or 5 stamens - occasionally this plant will have 4 petals, sepals and stamens.
Native uses: Boiled leaves were used as a tonic and blood purifier. Interestingly both whites and native people used this plant.
Fire response: This plant germinates from seed.Zeltnera: named for Louis Zeltner (1938- ) and Nicole Zeltner (1934- ), Swiss botanists, biosystematists and evolutionary biologists who specialize in plants of the gentian family. The genus Zeltnera was published by Guilhem Mansion in 2004.
venusta/venustum/venustus: charming, handsome, from Latin venustus, "charming, elegant." www.calflora.net is the source of this info.