Native Plants
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Dodecatheon alpinum
Dodecatheon alpinum (A. Gray) Greene
Alpine Shootingstar
Primulaceae (Primrose Family)
Synonym(s): Primula tetrandra
USDA Symbol: DOAL
USDA Native Status: L48 (N)
A smooth stalk growing from a basal rosette of leaves and topped by an umbel of 1-9 pinkish-purple flowers, each resembling a small rocket.
There are about 10 western species of Dodecatheon with reddish-lavender corollas, two also with a large knob at the end of the style. Tall Mountain Shootingstar (D. jeffryi), found from the Alaskan mountains south to the southern Sierra Nevada and east to Idaho and Montana, has 4-5 corolla lobes and minute, glandular hairs on the leaves and flower cluster. Sticky Shootingstar (D. redolens), found from the mountains of Southern California east to Nevada and Utah, is densely covered with glandular hairs, and its corolla has five lobes; the tubular portion covers the base of the anthers.
From the Image Gallery
Plant Characteristics
Duration: PerennialHabit: Herb
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Breeding System: Flowers Bisexual
Fruit Type: Capsule
Size Notes: Up to about 18 inches tall.
Bloom Information
Bloom Color: White , Pink , Yellow , PurpleBloom Time: May , Jun , Jul , Aug
Distribution
USA: AZ , CA , NV , OR , UTNative Distribution: Eastern Oregon south to southern California and east to Arizona and Utah.
Native Habitat: Mountain meadows and along mountain streams.
Value to Beneficial Insects
Special Value to Bumble BeesThis information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
National Wetland Indicator Status
Region: | AGCP | AK | AW | CB | EMP | GP | HI | MW | NCNE | WMVE |
Status: | FACW | FACW |
Web Reference
Webref 62 - Burke Herbarium Image Collection (2020) University of WashingtonWebref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter
Additional resources
USDA: Find Dodecatheon alpinum in USDA PlantsFNA: Find Dodecatheon alpinum in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Dodecatheon alpinum
Metadata
Record Modified: 2023-05-03Research By: TWC Staff