Saxifragopsis

Saxifragopsis fragarioides is the only species of the genus Saxifragopsis in the family Saxifragaceae ( Saxifragaceae ). It is native to the western United States.

• 4.1 Notes and references

Description

Vegetative characteristics

Saxifragopsis fragarioides grows as a perennial herbaceous plant, reaching heights of growth 6-25 cm. It forms by woody rhizomes loose stocks, but has stolons. The upright, one-celled, glandular hairy stem has no leaves, but only one or two scales reduced to bracts. The standing together in a basal rosette of leaves are divided into petiole and leaf blade. The little glandular- hairy petioles are 1.5 to 4 long. The 1.5 to 4 cm long leaf blade is broadly ovate and pinnately. The leaf margin is not lobulated but has only seven to eleven teeth and is ciliated. The leaf surface is smooth or sparsely glandular- hairy. There are small stipules present.

Generative features

In a compact, 6 to 25 cm long, schirmtraubigen inflorescence are about glandular hairy, scaly bracts on pedicels 27-90 flowers. The flowers are hermaphroditic and fünfzählig with double perianth. The 5-9 mm long, bell-shaped, greenish, more or less glandular- hairy flowers cup ( hypanthium ) is grown up to half of the ovary; the free area is about 0.2 mm long. The five outstretched to recurved, triangular to ovate sepals are green and about 2 mm long. The five white petals are spread, obovate to oblanceolate, 1.5 to 3 mm long and unlobed. There are two circles of five 1 mm long stamens present; they do not protrude beyond the petals. The two semi- permanent under carpels are fused only about one-fourth to one ovary. The ovules are completely overgrown. The two from 0.8 to 1 mm long stylus do not protrude beyond the petals and each terminating in a scar. The flowering period extends from June to August.

The broadly ovate zweischnabelige capsule fruit is brown, rarely to 3, usually 4 to 5 mm long and contains 50 to 75 seeds. The fruit capsule opens between the two short -beaked fruit. The dark brown seeds are ovoid - prismatic and smooth or ribbed.

The basic chromosome number is n = 7

Occurrence

The home of Saxifragopsis fragarioides located in California, Oregon and Washington. Saxifragopsis fragarioides thrives in the main deposits in crevices and slopes ( alluvial fans ) at altitudes between 1500 and 3000 meters. The occurrence of Saxifragopsis fragarioides limited almost to the Siskiyou Mountains of California and Oregon. Isolated outside this area are small populations in Washington that flourish about 500 meters lower than in the skin region.

System

This species was first described in 1881 under the name Saxifraga fragarioides by Edward Lee Greene at Torrey Botanical Club Bulletin of the, Volume 8, No. 11, p 121. John K. Small introduced in 1896 with this species under the name Saxifragopsis fragarioides in Two New Genera of Saxifragaceae in the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club, 23, pp. 19-20, Table 257, the new genus Saxifragopsis.

The genus name is derived from the Saxifragopsis genus Saxifraga name and the Greek opsis from are similar. The specific epithet means fragarioides strawberry similar.

Swell

• Elizabeth Fortson Wells & Patrick E. Elvander: Saxifragopsis in the Flora of North America, Volume 8, 2009, p 105: genus and species - Online.