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Abronia turbinata

(Trans Montane Abronia)

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Trans Montane Abronia, Transmontane Sand Verbena, Transmontane Sandverbena

Description

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Family Nyctaginaceae

Herbs, shrubs , trees , or sometimes spiny vines . Leaves opposite, alternate, or whorled ; stipules absent; petiole usually present, well defined; leaf blade simple , herbaceous or slightly fleshy , margin entire. Inflorescences mostly terminal , less often axillary , of cymes, umbels, or verticils , sometimes 1-flowered or fasciculate, often grouped into panicles; bracts often inconspicuous, sometimes forming calyxlike involucre, or large and brightly colored . Flowers bisexual , rarely unisexual or polygamous, actinomorphic . Perianth constricted beyond the ovary, base persistent , closely enclosing ovary which appears inferior, limb petaloid beyond constriction, tubular , funnelform , or campanulate , apex 5-10-lobed, lobes plicate or valvate in bud, persistent or caducous . Disk absent. Stamens (1-) 3-5(-many), hypogynous, free or connate at base, involute in bud; anthers 2-loculed, dehiscence longitudinal . Ovary superior, 1-loculed; ovule 1. Style 1; stigma globose . Fruit an achenelike anthocarp enclosed by persistent perianth, ribbed or winged , often glandular . Seed 1; endosperm present; embryo straight or curved .

About 30 genera and 300 species: tropics and subtropics, mainly in tropical America; six genera (two introduced ) and 13 species (one endemic, three introduced) in China.[1]

Genus Abronia

Herbs, annual or perennial , sometimes cespitose or appearing acaulescent , usually viscid-pubescent, from slender to stout taproot (extensively rhizomatous in Abronia bolackii). Stems prostrate to erect , unarmed , without glutinous bands on internodes. Leaves usually basal and cauline (all basal in A. bigelovii and A. nana), unequal in each pair, petiolate ; blade ± thick and succulent, base usually asymmetric . Inflorescences axillary (appearing scapose in A. bigelovii and A. nana), pedunculate , capitate clusters , with peripheral flowers usually opening first; receptacle slightly rounded to conic, without pedicel-like projections; bracts persistent , not accrescent , 5-10, distinct , forming involucre, lanceolate to broadly ovate , thinly papery or scarious , translucent , occasionally thin and green. Flowers bisexual , chasmogamous ; perianth radially symmetric , funnelform or salverform , constricted distal to ovary, abruptly expanded to 5-lobed limb; stamens 5-9, included ; styles included; stigmas linear . Fruits winged or not, usually fusiform or turbinate , in profile rhombic , cordate, or obdeltate, coriaceous , glabrate to viscid puberulent ; wings 2-5, opaque , subtly veined, not or only slightly extending beyond apex or base of body, distal margins sometimes dilated and flattened, broader than lamina, interior hollow, forming cavity , or filled with spongy tissue ; sulci smooth or slightly rugose .

Species ca. 20: North America, Mexico.

Mature to near-mature fruits are usually required for identification of Abronia species because of the variation of vegetative structures within each taxon . Abronia appears to be in a state of active evolution. Cross-pollination readily occurs in the greenhouse, producing a variety of hybrids. Hybridization occasionally occurs in the field .[2]

Physical Description

Species Abronia turbinata

Plants annual , infrequently perennial . Stems decumbent to ascending , much branched, elongate , reddish at least basally, glandular-pubescent , rarely glabrous or viscid-pubescent. Leaves: petiole 1-4.5 cm; blade broadly ovate to orbiculate, 1-5 × 0.5-3 cm, margins entire or ± repand and undulate , surfaces glabrous or sparsely glandular-pubescent. Inflorescences: peduncle longer than subtending petiole; bracts lanceolate to ovate, 3-10 × 1-5 mm, papery , puberulent to densely glandular-pubescent; flowers 15-35. Perianth: tube greenish to coral pink, 6-18 mm, limb white to pale pink, 5-8 mm diam. Fruits winged , turbinate , 3-8 × 3-6 mm, coriaceous , apex broadly tapered to prominent beak ; wings (2-) 5 (when 2, folded together) truncate distally with conspicuous dilations, cavities extending throughout. [source]

Habit: Forb/herb

Flowers: Bloom Period: February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October. • Flower Color: near white, pink, white

Size/Age/Growth

Size: under 6" tall.

Habitat

Sandy soils, desert scrub ; 900-2500 m [3].

Biology

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Reproduction

Duration: Annual , Perennial

Growth

Culture: Space 6-9" apart.

Soil: Minimum pH: 6.1 • Maximum pH: 7.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Synonyms

Abronia exalata Standl. • Abronia orbiculata Standl.

Notes

Publishing author : Torr. ex S.Watson Publication : Botany [Fortieth Parallel] 285 (t. 31) 1871 [Sep-Dec 1871]

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Abronia

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 40 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

A. alba (Whiteflower Sand Verbena) · A. alpina (Ramshaw Meadow Abronia) · A. ameliae (Amelia Sand Verbena) · A. ammophila (Tweedy's Sand Verbena) · A. angustifolia (Narrow-Leaf Sandverbena) · A. argillosa (Clay Sand Verbena) · A. aurita (Cope's Arboreal Alligator Lizard) · A. bigelovii (Galisteo Sand Verbena) · A. bolackii (Bolacks Sand Verbena) · A. carletoni (Carleton's Sand Verbena) · A. carletonii (Carleton's Sand Verbena) · A. elliptica (Dwarf Sandverbena) · A. fragrans (Four Oclock) · A. gracilis (Narrow Sandverbena) · A. insularis (Island Sand Verbena) · A. latifolia (Coastal Sand Verbena) · A. macrocarpa (Large-Fruited Sand Verbena) · A. maritima (Red Sand Verbena) · A. mellifera (Honey-Scent Sand Verbena) · A. minor (Little Sand Verbena) · A. nana (Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. nana covillei (Coville's Dwarf Abronia) · A. nana S.Watson var. harrisii Welsh (Harris' Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. nana S.Watson var. nana S.Watson (Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. nana var. covillei (Coville's Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. nana var. harrisii (Harris' Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. nana var. nana (Dwarf Sand Verbena) · A. neurophylla (Beach Sand Verbena) · A. platyphylla (Broadleaf Sand Verbena) · A. pogonantha (Mojave Sand Verbena) · A. turbinata (Trans Montane Abronia) · A. umbellata (Pink Sand Verbena) · A. umbellata breviflora (Pink Sand Verbena) · A. umbellata variabilis (Beach Sandverbena) · A. umbellata var. umbellata (Sand-Verbena) · A. umbellata subsp. breviflora (Pink Sand Verbena) · A. umbellata subsp. variabilis (Variable Pink Sand Verbena) · A. villosa (Desert Sand Verbena) · A. villosa var. aurita (Sand Verbena) · A. villosa var. villosa (Wooly Desert Sand Verbena)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 28, 2008:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Dequan Lu & Michael G. Gilbert "Nyctaginaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 5 Page 430. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. Leo A. Galloway "Abronia". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 16, 61. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  3. "Abronia turbinata". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 62, 64, 66. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
Last Revised: 7/15/2012