Penstemon thurberi

Thurber's beardtongue

Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.2

Thurber's beardtongue is a California native shrub found in the Peninsular Ranges and Mojave Desert bioregions on sandy and gravelly slopes in chaparral, creosote-bush scrub, and pinyon/juniper woodland at elevations of 200 to 1,600 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces lavender, rose, or blue-purple flowers 8 to 15 millimeters long with a funnel-shaped corolla and obliquely spreading lips. Growing as a rounded shrub 20 to 80 centimeters tall, it has a compact and symmetrical form with glabrous stems. Its narrow, linear leaves are 10 to 45 millimeters long, typically rolled upward and nearly round in cross-section. The plant features a distinctive flower with a hairy inner floor and spreading anther sacs that give it a delicate, intricate appearance.

Habitat: Sandy and gravelly slopes and mesas, in chaparral, creosote-bush or Joshua-tree scrub, pinyon/juniper woodland

Bloom period: May-Jun

Elevation: 200-1600 m

Bioregions: PR, DMoj

California counties: San Bernardino, San Diego, Riverside

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