Penstemon davidsonii var. davidsonii

Davidson's beardtongue

Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Davidson's beardtongue is a California native shrub found in the Klamath Ranges, high Cascades, Sierra Nevada, Warner Mountains, and northern eastern Sierra Nevada in montane to alpine outcrops and talus at elevations of 2,000 to 3,750 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces blue-violet to blue-purple flowers with white-shaggy inner surfaces, creating a striking contrast. Growing as a low, mat-forming shrub less than 10 centimeters tall with short hairs, it spreads horizontally across rocky terrain. Its leaves are mostly basal, with elliptic to obovate blades 5 to 30 millimeters long, appearing green and smooth. The flower's distinctive white-woolly anthers and pale yellow-hairy staminode add to its unique alpine character.

Habitat: Montane to alpine outcrops, talus

Bloom period: Jul-Aug

Elevation: 2000-3750 m

Bioregions: KR, CaRH, SNH, Wrn, n SNE (Sweetwater Mtns)

California counties: Siskiyou, Mono, Fresno, Modoc, Tulare, Del Norte, El Dorado, Alpine, Madera, Tuolumne, Mariposa, Mendocino, Shasta, Inyo, Lassen, Plumas, Sierra, Kern

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.