Penstemon heterodoxus var. heterodoxus
Sierra beardtongue
Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: perennial · Native
Sierra beardtongue is a California native perennial found in the northern Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada, and White and Inyo Mountains in montane and subalpine slopes, meadows, and scree at elevations of 2,700 to 3,900 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces delicate flowers in small clusters, typically with one to two flower stems. Growing with compact stems 5 to 20 centimeters tall, it forms dense, low-growing clumps in high-elevation alpine environments. Its leaves are narrow and relatively small, ranging from 5 to 50 millimeters long and 2 to 10 millimeters wide, with a compact, somewhat linear structure. The plant's distinctive glandular inflorescence and low-growing form make it well-adapted to harsh, rocky high-mountain habitats.
Habitat: Montane and subalpine slopes, meadows, scree
Bloom period: Jul-Aug
Elevation: 2700-3900 m
Bioregions: SNH, n SNE, W&I
California counties: Tuolumne, Tulare, Inyo, Mono, Alpine, Mariposa, Amador, Sierra, Plumas, El Dorado, Fresno, Madera, Nevada, Placer, Lassen
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.