E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Claytonia rubra subsp. depressa (Howell) Tidestr. (A. Gray) John M. Mill. & K.L. Chambers
redstem springbeauty
Montiaceae (Purslane family)
(Previously in Portulacaceae)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

© Liz Watkinson  Email the photographer   (Photo ID #23981)

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Distribution of Claytonia rubra subsp. depressa
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Species Information

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General:
Annual herb from a slender taproot; stems ascending to erect, simple, several, red or green, 1-15 cm tall.
Leaves:
Basal leaves usually many, prostrate to spreading, smaller inward, elliptic, the blades 0.5-2 cm long, the bases tapered abruptly or squared off, the stalks 1-6 cm long; stem leaves paired, opposite, usually unequally fused, less than 4 cm wide.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of whorled racemes with 3-30 unstalked or stalked flowers, with one bract subtending the lowest flower; flower stalks red or green; petals 5, white or pinkish, 2-3.5 mm long; sepals 2, 1.5-3 mm long.
Fruits:
Capsules; seeds 3, round to egg-shaped, black, shiny, smooth (at 20x magnification), the ap pendages white, fleshy, 1.5-3 mm long.
Notes:
See comments under C. parviflora. Two closely related subspecies occur in our region:

1. Basal leaf blades widely elliptic to egg-shaped, the bases abruptly tapered; inflorescence more or less unstalked; only leaf stalks often red................ ssp. depressa (A. Gray) J. Miller & Chambers

1. Basal leaf blades diamond- or triangular-shaped, the bases squared off; inflorescence more or less stalked; plants and leaf stalks often red................... ssp. rubra

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Moist to dry sand dunes, meadows, open forests and rock outcrops in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; rare on SE Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and the lower mainland (ssp. depressa), frequent in SC BC (ssp. rubra); S to SD, CO and CA.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Claytonia parviflora var. depressa A. Gray
Claytonia perfoliata var. depressa (A. Gray) Poelln.
Montia parviflora subsp. depressa
Montia perfoliata var. depressa (A. Gray) Jeps.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Additional Photo Sources

General References