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  Rosaceae : Geum triflorum

  R. Neil Reese

  Geum triflorum is perennial herb growing from thick rhizomes, often forming large clumps, with flowering stems 20-40 cm tall. The stems are purplish in color, softly hairy, with a pair of opposite, smaller, finely dissected leaves about half way up. The basal leaves have blades 5-20 cm long, unequally pinnately divided into 7-19 lobes or pinnae up to 5 cm long, generally larger toward the tip. The inflorescences are cymes, with peduncles up to 10 cm long, with 3-4 nodding flowers. Each flower has a hemispherical hypanthium 4-5 mm long, with 5 purple sepals 8-12 mm long and simple to trifid bracts between them. There are 5 yellow to pink to purple rounded petals enclosed by, to exerted from the sepals and bracts. The stamens and pistils are numerous. The fruit are achenes ~ 3 mm long with purplish, plumose styles 2.5-5 cm long. Prairie smoke blooms from April into June on prairies and in open woodlands along the eastern and western borders of South Dakota.

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  Rosaceae: Potentilla arguta

  R. Neil Reese

  Potentilla arguta is a perennial herbaceous plant growing 30 to 90 cm tall from a fibrous root system. Stems are erect, slender, and often smooth or slightly hairy. The medium green leaves are compound, usually with five to seven leaflets arranged palmately. Leaflets are ovate to lanceolate, 2 to 6 cm long and 1 to 3 cm wide, with finely serrated margins and pointed tips. The texture is generally smooth to slightly hairy. Flowers are 1.5 to 3 cm wide and bloom June through August. Each flower has a calyx of five lanceolate sepals, 5 to 8 mm long and 2 to 3 mm wide, often with fine hairs on the edges and pointed tips that curve slightly outward; five bright yellow, broadly ovate to rounded petals, 8 to 15 mm long and 6 to 12 mm wide, with slightly notched tips. Numerous stamens surround the pistils; each stamen is slender, 4 to 6 mm long, with bright yellow anthers. The pistils are clustered centrally, each about 3 to 5 mm long, with slender styles topped by small, rounded stigmas. After fertilization, the pistils develop into a dense cluster of small achenes, each 2 to 3 mm long. Tall cinquefoil commonly grows in open woods, prairies, and along stream banks, favoring well-drained soils and sunny to partly shaded locations, mainly in the eastern and central parts of in South Dakota.

  Synonym: Drymocallis arguta

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  Rosaceae: Potentilla gracilis

  R. Neil Reese

  Potentilla gracilis is a perennial herbaceous plant growing 20 to 80 cm tall from a fibrous root system with slender, erect, and often slightly hairy, sometimes branched stems. The compound leaves typically have three to five slender, lanceolate to ovate leaflets, each 1.5 to 5 cm long and 0.5 to 2 cm wide, with finely serrated margins and petioles 1–5 cm long. The upper leaflet surface is medium to dark green with a smooth to slightly hairy texture, giving it a somewhat glossy appearance. The lower surface is lighter green, often paler or grayish-green, and usually has a more noticeable covering of fine hairs, giving it a soft, slightly fuzzy texture. The inflorescence is a loose cluster (cyme) of several bright yellow flowers blooming from June through August. The calyx consists of five lanceolate sepals, 4 to 7 mm long and 1.5 to 3 mm wide, often hairy along the edges with pointed tips that curve slightly outward, enclosing the flower before it opens. The flowers have five broadly ovate petals about 7 to 14 mm long and 5 to 10 mm wide. Numerous stamens with slender filaments approximately 3 to 5 mm long and bright yellow anthers surround the 20 to 40 pistils, which are clustered centrally, each 3 to 4 mm long with slender styles and small rounded stigmas. Fruit matures from August through September as an aggregate of small achenes, 2 to 3 mm long, tightly clustered after fertilization. Native to South Dakota, slender cinquefoil is commonly found in moist meadows, open woods, and along stream banks, especially in the central and western parts of the state.

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  Rosaceae: Potentilla hippiana

  R. Neil Reese

  Potentilla hippiana is a perennial herbaceous plant growing 15 to 60 cm tall growing from a thick, woody rootstock. Its slender, erect stems are often hairy. The alternate, compound leaves typically have five to seven ovate to lanceolate leaflets, each 1.5 to 4 cm long and 0.5 to 2 cm wide, with finely serrated margins and a petiole 2 to 6 cm long. The upper leaf surface is medium green, mostly smooth to slightly hairy, while the lower surface is paler and covered with fine hairs, giving it a soft texture. The inflorescence is a loose cyme of bright yellow flowers that bloom from June through August. The calyx consists of five lanceolate sepals, 4 to 7 mm long and 1.5 to 3 mm wide, often hairy along the edges with pointed tips that curve slightly outward, enclosing the flower before it opens. Each flower has five broadly ovate petals, about 8 to 15 mm long and 5 to 12 mm wide. Numerous stamens with slender filaments, 3 to 5 mm long, and bright yellow anthers surround the pistils, which number around 20 to 40 per flower, each 3 to 4 mm long with slender styles and small rounded stigmas. Fruit matures from August through September as an aggregate of small achenes, 2 to 3 mm long, tightly clustered after fertilization. Native to South Dakota, Hipp's cinquefoil is commonly found in dry prairies, open rocky slopes, and well-drained soils, especially in the western and central parts of the state.

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  Rosaceae : Prunus americana

  R. Neil Reese

  Prunus americana is a perennial, deciduous shrub or small tree, 2-6 m tall, usually forming thickets from root-suckers. There are generally many stems per plant, the older stems bark becomes dark gray and scaly, the younger stems are reddish brown to gray with a flaking waxy cuticle, typically smooth but occasionally with persistent hairs. The branches spread widely, with older lateral twigs developing into spines up to 7 cm long. the simple, alternate leaves have petioles 8-20 mm long, often with glands near the base of the blade and stipules 5-14 mm long. The leaf blade is ovate to lanceolate-ovate, 6-10 cm long, sharply pointed, the margins with teeth or doubled teeth, green and smooth above and with hairs on the lower side. The inflorescence consists of axillary and terminal clusters o 2-5 flowers on smooth pedicels 7-20 mm long, and usually appearing before the leaves and remaining as the leaves develop. The flowers have a conical hypanthium ~3 mm long, the 5 green, reflexed sepals are 3-4 mm long with hairs on the upper side. The 5 oblong ovate white petals are constricted (clawed)8-12 mm long. there are 20-30 stamens inserted on the edge of the hypanthium in several rows, with a single 2-carpeled pistil, the style 12-15 mm long with a capitate stigma. The fruit is a fleshy drupe, yellow to reddish-purple, 2-3 cm long and 2-2.5 cm in diameter, often having a waxy coating. Wild plums bloom in April and May and ripen in August and September. They are common in woodlands, thickets, pastures, along streams and roadsides throughout South Dakota.

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  Rosaceae : Prunus virginiana

  R. Neil Reese

  Prunus virginiana is a perennial, deciduous shrub or small tree that forms thickets from root sprouts and grows 2-6 m in height. The bark on the trunk and branches is red brown to dark brown in color. The simple, alternate leaves have petioles 1-3 cm long, with stipules 2-4 mm long and large glands near the base of the blade. The blades are ovate to obovate, 4-12 cm long, 3-6 cm wide, the rounded and the tip pointed, with small teeth on the margins. The upper leaf surface is usually dark green and shiny and the lower surface gray green, occasionally with hairs along the veins. the inflorescences are dense racemes terminating leafy twigs of the season. Each flower has a bell-shaped hypanthium ~1.5 mm long with 5 deciduous sepals 1-1.5 mm long. The 5 white petals are rounded, 3-4 mm long. there are 20-30 stamens in several rows surrounding a single ovoid ovary ~ 1.5 mm long. the fruit is a round, deep red to almost black, fleshy drupe, 8-11 mm in diameter. Chokecherries bloom in April and May in open woodlands, canyons, on prairies and along streams and roadways throughout South Dakota.

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  Rosaceae: Purshia tridentata

  R. Neil Reese

  Purshia tridentata is a deciduous, woody shrub growing 1 to 3 meters tall with multiple slender, erect branches arising from a deep root system. The leaves are alternate and simple, measuring 1 to 3 cm long and 0.5 to 1.5 cm wide, with three distinct, obovate to spatulate lobes. The upper leaf surface is dark green and smooth, while the lower surface is lighter green and often covered with fine hairs giving a slightly fuzzy texture. Leaves are borne on petioles 2–5 mm long. The inflorescence consists of solitary flowers or small clusters born in leaf axils, blooming from April through June. The calyx comprises five small, narrowly triangular sepals about 3 to 5 mm long. The flowers have five pale to bright yellow petals each 10–15 mm long and slightly clawed at the base and are often fragrant. Stamens number about 15–30, inserted around the base of the ovary in a circle. The style is slender and elongated, ending in a small, rounded stigma. Fruits are achenes with a long, slender, beak-like tip, enclosed in a dry, papery cup or calyx. They mature from August through September. Rare but native in South Dakota, antelope bitterbrush occurs primarily in dry, rocky, and open shrublands in the southern Black Hills.

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  Rosaceae : Rosa arkansana

  R. Neil Reese

  Rosa arkansana is small perennial shrub growing from rhizomes, with a woody base and a mixture of woody and herbaceous stems that often die back to the ground each year. The 10-50 cm tall stems are sparkly to densely covered in unequal prickles. The alternate, petiolate leaves have stipules. The compound odd-pinnate blades have 7-11 obovate to elliptic leaflets, 1-4 cm long and < 3.5 cm wide, with small teeth on the upper 2/3 portion. The flowers are in corymb-like clusters, of 3 or more, at the ends of the new year’s branches and occasionally from side branches on the previous year’s growth. The rounded hypanthium has 5 sepals, 1.5-3 cm long and 3-5 mm wide, that are persistent with the fruit. The 5 white, pink to occasionally red petals are 1.5-3 cm long, obovate and usually notched. There are numerous stamens and 15-30 pistils that develop into achenes 3-5 mm long with long stiff hairs on one side. The accessory fruit (rose hips) contains the achenes. Prairie rose blooms from May into August on prairies, open woodlands and along roadsides throughout South Dakota.

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  Rosaceae : Rubus idaeus ssp. strigosus

  R. Neil Reese

  Rubus idaeus ssp. strigosus is the red raspberry native to North America. The plants are sub-shrubs from a perennial, rhizomatous rootstock, with stems that are semiwoody, erect to arching, 0.5-3 m in length, sparingly to copiously covered in prickles. The stems produce leaves the first year, leafy shoots and flowers from the leaf axils the second year, and then die back to the ground. The alternate, petiolate, compound leaves have 3 or 5 ovate to oblong leaflets 4-10 cm long. There are 1-2 pairs of lateral, unlobed, sessile leaflets, and a central leaflet, often 2 or 3 lobed, attached via a short rachis segment. Each leaflet has a pointed tip and rounded to heart-shaped base. The margins are single or double toothed, the upper surface is dark green, sparsely hairy to smooth and the lower surface is densely hairy, appearing silvery. The inflorescence consists of 1 to a few small axillary, leafy racemes each with several flowers. The hypanthium is flat to cupped, the green calyx has 5 reflexed lobes, 4-7 mm long, the 5 white, ascending, petals are narrowly oblong to spatulate, 4-6 mm long. there are numerous stamens and pistils inserted into a conic receptacle. The fruit is a cluster of red 1-seeded, finely hairy drupelets, 12-18 mm long. American wild raspberries bloom from May into July in open woodlands, on hillsides and along streambanks in counties scattered throughout South Dakota.

  Synonym: Rubus idaeus ssp. sachalinensis

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  Rosaceae : Rubus parviflorus

  R. Neil Reese

  Rubus parviflorus is a perennial shrub that spreads by rhizomes, with erect, unarmed stems 0.5-3 m long, the younger stems having glandular hairs and the older stems developing gray, exfoliating bark. The simple, alternate leaves are palmately lobed, 6-20 cm long and 11-18 cm wide, and the leaf margins are doubly toothed. The petioles are 6-15 cm long, often with glandular hairs, with attached, lanceolate stipules, 5-12 mm long. the inflorescence is a terminal cluster of 3-7 flowers. The flowers have a small hypanthium with 5 sepals, 10-16 mm long, with a tail-like appendage about ½ the length , and 5white, obovate petals, 2-2.5 cm long. there are numerous stamens and many, simple pistils that are inserted in a conical receptacle. The fruit is a thimble-like aggregate of red drupelets that fall as a unit leaving the persistent receptacle. Thimbleberries bloom from May into July in open woods, hillsides and along streambanks in western South Dakota.

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  Rubiaceae: Galium aparine

  R. Neil Reese

  Galium aparine is an annual or biennial herbaceous plant growing from a fibrous root system and characterized by sprawling, weakly erect, square stems that can reach 30–100 cm in length. The stems and leaves are covered in tiny, hooked hairs, giving the plant a sticky or velcro-like feel, which helps it cling to other plants and surfaces for support. Leaves are arranged in whorls of six to eight, linear to lanceolate, 1–3 cm long and 2–5 mm wide, with rough margins. Flowering occurs from late spring through summer (May–August). Flowers are small and contain four sepals and petals. The sepals are green, small, triangular to lanceolate in shape, about 0.5 to 1 millimeter long. They form a tiny calyx cup at the base of the flower and often have fine hairs on their edges. The petals are white to greenish-white, and arranged like narrow, pointed stars. Each petal is about 1.5 to 3 millimeters long and about 2–3 mm wide, with a slightly notched or toothed tip, contributing to the star-like appearance of the flower. Flowers are bisexual, with four stamens and a pistil. Fruits are small schizocarps that separate into two mericarps covered with hooked hairs that stick to animals, clothing, and fur, aiding in seed dispersal. Cleavers are widespread in South Dakota in disturbed soils, woods, gardens, and along fences and roadsides.

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  Rubiaceae : Galium boreale

  R. Neil Reese

  Galium boreale is a perennial herb growing from a creeping rhizome with numerous, erect, often branched stems, 20-70 cm tall, that have clusters of hairs below the nodes. The sessile, simple, linear to lanceolate leaves are in whorls of 4, 3-4 cm long, often with fascicles of smaller leaves in their axils. The inflorescence consists of showy, terminal cymose panicles. The flowers have a small tubular calyx, the corolla is wheel-like, 3.5-7 mm wide, with 4 white to occasionally yellowish, reflexed lobes. There are 4 stamens and a 2-carpled pistil with 2 styles. The fruit is dry, globose, 2 mm long schizocarp the spits into 2 seed-like parts. Northern bedstraw blooms from June into September in prairies, woodlands, hillsides and roadways, often forming large colonies, in the Black Hills, the Coteau des Prairies and norther counties of South Dakota.

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  Salicaceae :Populus deltoides ssp. monilifera

  R. Neil Reese

  Populus deltoides is a large tree up to 40 m in height with a truck up to 2 m diameter at breast height, often branching near the base, ascending at a moderate angle and forming a very broad crown. The youn stens are olive brown to orangish, becoming grayish tan as they age, the main trunk and larger branches have tan bark the is deeply furrowed. The winter buds are brown, ovoid, resinous and large, 1-2 cm long. The simple, alternate, deciduous leaves are deltoid, 4-14 cm long, 4-15 cm wide, light green with rounded teeth and a pointed end. The petioles are long (3-13 cm) and laterally compressed. The trees are dioecious, the male trees producing staminate catkins 5-13 cm long with flowers containing up to 80 stamens. The female (pistilate) catkins are about the same length at flowering but elongating in fruit. The flowers contain a single pistil that forms an elliptic-ovoid, 3-4 valved capsule about 1 cm long containing 7-10 cottony seeds. Plains cottonwoods bloom in March into June, releasing seeds in June and July. Primarily riparian, the trees are found along streams, lakes and other moist areas throughout South Dakota.

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  Salicaceae: Populus tremuloides

  R. Neil Reese

  Populus tremuloides is a deciduous, fast-growing tree reaching 15 to 25 meters tall with smooth, pale greenish white to gray bark that becomes furrowed with age. The root system is extensive and shallow with vigorous lateral root suckering, allowing the tree to form large clonal colonies. Leaves are alternate, nearly round to broadly ovate, 4 to 8 cm long and 3 to 7 cm wide, with finely serrated margins and flattened petioles that cause the leaves to tremble in the wind. Flowers are produced in catkins; male and female catkins are on separate trees (dioecious). Male catkins are slender and cylindrical, 2 to 6 cm long and about 0.5 to 1 cm wide, releasing pollen from April to May. Female catkins are slightly larger, 3 to 8 cm long and about 0.7 to 1.2 cm wide, maturing from May through June. The fruit consists of small capsules, 5 to 10 mm long, that split open to release numerous tiny seeds attached to cottony hairs which aid in wind dispersal. Native to South Dakota, quaking aspen is widespread in the northern and mountainous regions, commonly found in mixed forests, riparian zones, and upland areas.

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  Saxifragaceae : Heuchera richardsonii

  R. Neil Reese

  Heuchera richardsonii is a perennial herb from a stout, branched caudex with 1 or a few softly hairy stems, 15-70 cm tall. The leaves are basal with long petioles, the blades are heart to kidney shaped, 3-8 cm wide with 5-7 rounded lobes, smooth and green on top and lighter with hairs on the lower surface. The inflorescence is a raceme to narrow panicle, with glandular hairs, 5-20 cm long, the flowers in clusters of 2-6. The flowers have a green, well-developed, irregular, tubular hypanthium with 5 rounded lobes and short glandular hairs on the outer surface. The 5 stamens have orange anthers and are exerted from the floral tube. The 2 upper lobes of the tube are longest and tend to drape over the stamens. Although the flower color is usually green, it can becomes yellowish brown or reddish in sunnier locations. The 2-carpeled, partially inferior pistil is tapered into 2 styles up to 2.5 mm long. Prairie alumroot blooms in June and July in open woodlands and prairies in counties scattered throughout South Dakota.

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  Saxifragaceae: Lithophragma glabrum

  R. Neil Reese

  Lithophragma glabrum is a perennial, herbaceous wildflower growing from a slender rhizome. Stems are slender, erect or ascending, and generally 15–50 cm tall. Leaves are alternate or basal, deeply lobed into 3 to 7 narrow segments, each leaflet about 1–3 cm long and 0.5–1.5 cm wide, with entire margins. The leaves are petiolate, with delicate stalks attaching them to the stem. Flowering occurs in late spring to early summer (May–July). Flowers have five separate, ovate to lanceolate sepals approximately 5 to 10 mm long and 1.5 to 3 mm wide, which are smooth and glabrous. The five petals are also separate, about 10 to 20 mm long and 3 to 7 mm wide, deeply lobed or divided into narrow linear segments, and white to pale pink in color. Flowers have ten stamens and a superior ovary with a style and stigma. The fruit is a capsule that splits open to release numerous tiny seeds. In South Dakota, Smooth woodland star is native and found in dry open woods, rocky slopes, and foothills, particularly in the Black Hills region.

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  Scrophulariaceae: Castilleja angustifolia var. dubia

  R. Neil Reese

  Castilleja angustifolia var. dubia is a perennial herb growing from a woody, branching taproot and may form small clumps. Stems are erect, simple or occasionally branched near the base, typically 10–40 cm tall, and covered with short, soft, grayish or white hairs (pubescent). Leaves are alternate, narrow, linear to lanceolate, 2–6 cm long and 1–5 mm wide, entire or with a few shallow lobes, and are also softly hairy. Only cauline leaves are present; there is no basal rosette. Flowering occurs from late spring to early summer (May–July). Inflorescences are terminal, forming dense, spike-like clusters of brightly colored bracts and small, tubular flowers. Bracts are bright red to orange-red (sometimes yellow), 1–2.5 cm long, and often deeply divided at the tip. The actual flowers are inconspicuous, tubular, greenish to yellowish, 2-lipped, and about 1.5–2.5 cm long, partly hidden among the bracts. Each flower has a calyx with four lobes, a tubular corolla, four stamens, and a single style. The fruit is a small, oval capsule (8–12 mm) containing numerous tiny, brown, dust-like seeds, maturing in midsummer. Narrowleaf Indian paintbrush is native to South Dakota, particularly in dry prairies, sagebrush flats, rocky hillsides, and open pine woodlands. It is most commonly found in the western part of the state, including the Black Hills and Badlands.

  Synonym: Castilleja chromosa

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  Scrophulariaceae : Castilleja sessiliflora

  R. Neil Reese

  Castilleja sessiliflora is a perennial herb with simple, hairy, ascending to erect stems, 10-30 cm tall, growing from a woody crown. The simple, sessile, alternate, linear leaves are entire, or with the upper most having divergent lobes. The inflorescence is a spike with the flowers subtended by hairy, leafy bracts, shorter than the flowers, that become reduced and are often pink tipped toward the top. The calyx tube is 25-40 mm long, with primary lobes 12-20 mm long and the final with linear segments, 8-14 mm long. The corolla is purplish to yellow to cream colored, 35-55 mm long, forming a curved tube, with a prominent lower lip and conspicuously exerted beyond the bracts. The fruit is an ovate capsule. Downy paintbrush blooms from early May into July on dry plains and hillsides throughout South Dakota.

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  Scrophulariaceae: Collinsia parviflora

  R. Neil Reese

  Collinsia parviflora is an annual or annual-biennial herb growing from a fibrous root system. The plant usually reaches 10–40 cm in height, with slender, erect, and often branched stems that can be smooth or sparsely hairy. Leaves are opposite, simple, ovate to lanceolate, typically 1–4 cm long and 0.5–1.5 cm wide, with entire or slightly toothed margins and a slightly hairy surface. Flowering occurs from late spring through summer (May–August). Inflorescences are dense terminal racemes or spikes with small, two-lipped flowers about 5–8 mm long. Flowers are typically pale blue to lavender, sometimes with darker markings or white areas on the lower lip. The sepals are fused into a tubular calyx approximately 3–5 mm long and 1.5–2 mm wide at the widest part. The calyx ends in five narrow, pointed lobes each about 1–2 mm long. The is tubular corolla has 5 lobes forming the two distinct lips, measuring about 6–10 mm long and approximately 3–5 mm wide at the expanded lower lip. The upper lip is divided into two small lobes about 1–2 mm long, while the lower lip has three broader lobes approximately 2–4 mm long and 2–3 mm wide. There are 2 stamens and a single pistil. The fruit is a small, round capsule (2–3 mm), maturing in midsummer, containing several tiny seeds. Small-flowered blue-eyed Mary is native to South Dakota and commonly found in open woodlands, grasslands, dry slopes, and disturbed areas, especially in upland and foothill regions statewide.

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  Scrophulariaceae : Linaria vulgaris

  R. Neil Reese

  Linaria vulgaris is a perennial from a taproot, with 1-several, simple or branched, ascending to erect stems, 30-60 cm tall. The simple, linear leaves are 2.5-5 cm long, 2-6 mm wide, with a pointed end and tapering to a petiolate base. The inflorescence is a crowded, terminal, bracteate raceme. The calyx is deeply 5-parted, the segments unequal, lanceolate and ~ 3 mm long. The yellow corolla is strongly bilabiate and spurred. The upper lip is 8-12 mm long, the lower lip has an orange, hairy palate that is 6-9 mm long, with a straight spur 8-14 mm long. there are 2 short and 2 long stamens, a single pistil with a 2-lobed stigma. The fruit is a globose capsule, 5-9 mm long. Butter and eggs blooms from June into August in disturbed places throughout South Dakota.

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  Scrophulariaceae: Pedicularis canadensis

  R. Neil Reese

  Pedicularis canadensis is a perennial herb growing 15 to 50 cm tall from a fibrous root system, sometimes stoloniferous. The leaves are chiefly basal and petiolate, with petioles 5 to 15 cm long. Each leaf is pinnately compound with 7 to 15 lanceolate to oblong leaflets, each 2 to 5 cm long and 0.5 to 1.5 cm wide, with serrate margins and a slightly hairy surface. The upper leaves are progressively reduced, becoming nearly sessile. The erect flowering stems bear dense spikes of tubular, bilaterally symmetrical flowers blooming from May through July. Each flower has five green, lanceolate sepals about 5 to 7 mm long and 1.5 to 2.5 mm wide. The corolla is creamy white to pale yellow, about 15 to 20 mm long and 6 to 8 mm wide, with an upper curved lip forming a hood and a lower lip with three lobes. The flower contains four stamens with two long and two short filaments, and the anthers are fused into a tube surrounding the style. The pistil has a superior ovary with a style about 7 to 9 mm long, ending in a bifid stigma. Fruits develop from June through August, maturing into ovoid capsules 8 to 12 mm long and 3 to 5 mm wide, which split open to release numerous small seeds. Canadian lousewort is native to South Dakota, found primarily in the eastern and central parts of the state growing in prairies, open woodlands, and sandy or rocky soils.

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  Scrophulariaceae : Penstemon albidus

  R. Neil Reese

  Penstemon albidus is a perennial herb arising from a short-branched caudex, with 1-5 hairy, ascending to erect stems, 15-50 cm tall. The basal leaves are petiolate, lanceolate to obovate, 2-10 cm long and 7-20 mm wide, the margins entire to finely toothed. The cauline leaves are simple, sessile, opposite, lanceolate to lance-ovate, 2.5-6.5 cm long and 7-20 mm wide, the tips pointed with entire to finely toothed margins. The inflorescence consist of 3-10 opposite pairs of flower clusters on short, peduncles arising from leaf axils in the upper plant, each cluster with 2 to 7 short-pedicellate flowers. The calyx is covered with glandular hairs, with 5 lobes, 4-7 mm long. the weakly bilabiate corolla is white to light pink, funnel-shaped, 6-8 mm wide with red-purple nectar guides on the inside. The lower lip has 3 nearly equal, downward pointing lobes, the upper lip is erect, with 2 lobes only slightly smaller than the lower lobes. There are 4-fertile (2-short, 2-Long) stamen and a sterile staminode. The fruit is an ovoid capsule 8-12 mm long. White beardtongue blooms from April into July on open prairies and hillsides throughout South Dakota.

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  Scrophulariaceae : Penstemon angustifolius

  R. Neil Reese

  Penstemon angustifolius is a perennial herb arising from a short-branched caudex, with 1-10, ascending to erect stems, 15-50 cm tall, often with a waxy coating. The basal thick leaves are sessile to having a short, winged petiole, linear to oblanceolate, 4-9 cm long and 2-18 mm wide, the margins entire. The cauline leaves are simple, sessile, clasping, opposite, linear to lanceolate, 3-11 cm long and 2-24 mm wide, the tips pointed with entire margins. All of the leaves are generally covered with a blue waxy coating. The inflorescence consist of 5-15 opposite pairs of flower clusters on short, peduncles arising from leaf axils in the upper plant, each cluster with 4 to 8 short-pedicellate flowers. The calyx is smooth and waxy, sometimes with a few short hairs, with 5 lobes, 4-8 mm long. The bilabiate corolla is white to lavender to blue, tubular, 14-20 mm long, 4-6 mm wide with violet to red-purple nectar guides on the inside. The 3 lobes of the lower lip and 2 lobes of the upper lip are slightly reflexed with a few white hairs on the inside of the lower lip. There are 4-fertile (2-short, 2-Long) stamen and a sterile staminode, that is bearded with yellow hairs. The fruit is an ovoid capsule 9-14 mm long. Narrowleaf beardtongue blooms in May and June on open prairies and sandhills in western South Dakota.

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  Scrophulariaceae: Penstemon gracilis

  R. Neil Reese

  Penstemon gracilis is a perennial herb with 1-several erect stems growing from a woody caudex, generally 20-50 cm tall and often reddish colored with glandular hairs toward the top. The simple basal leaves have a short, winged petiole, the lanceolate to ovate blade 2.5-7.5 cm long and 4-15 mm wide, with a few to many teeth. The linear to lanceolate cauline leaves are opposite, clasping the stem, 2.5=9 cm long and 2-15 mm wide, with similarly toothed margins. The leaves are smooth to sparsely hairy. The inflorescence is a panicle, 5-21 cm long, of 2-6 flowered axillary cymes. The 5 calyx lobes are 4-6 mm long and up to 2 mm wide, with glandular hairs. The corolla is bilabiate, 15-22 mm long, pale lavender to pink externally and lighter colored within. The slender corolla tube has glandular hairs, the throat is 4-6 mm wide, with darker lines inside and a beard of whitish hairs going back about halfway. The upper lip is reflexed, and the lower lip extended. The 4 black-tipped stamens hug the upper surface, and a sterile lower stamen forms a beard of yellow hairs. The fruit is a 6-8 mm long capsule. Slender beardtongue blooms from May to August on sandy or gravelly soil in prairies, valleys, and at lower elevations in mountains throughout much of South Dakota.

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  Scrophulariaceae : Penstemon grandiflorus

  R. Neil Reese

  Penstemon grandiflorus is a weakly perennial herb with 1-3 erect, smooth, waxy stems arising from a woody caudex growing up to about 1 m tall. The blue-green leaves are both basal and cauline, thick (succulent) and often covered in a waxy bloom, with entire margins. The basal and lower most stem leaves are shortly petiolate, spatula-shaped to orbicular, 3 to 16 cm long, 1-5 cm wide, rounded to pointed at the tip and tapering at the base. The sessile, opposite, ascending cauline leaves are 2- 9 cm long, 1.5-5 cm wide, more broadly egg-shaped, clasping at the base and reduced to bracts on the upper stem. The inflorescence consists of 3-9 clusters of flowers, with peduncles arising in the axils of the upper leaves, each cluster having 2-4 flowers on short pedicels. The green calyx has 5 lobes, 7-11 mm long. The bilabiate corolla is 35-48 mm long, abruptly inflated, lavender to bluish purple in color, the throat 15-18 mm wide, with magenta nectar guides on the inside. The lobes of the upper lip are spreading to reflexed, the lower lips spreading. The style and 4 stamens with black anthers hug the upper part of the tube and a white sterile stamen with a few yellow hairs on its tip is contained within the tube. The fruit is an ovoid capsule, 16-25 mm long containing several black to brown seeds up to 4 mm long. Large-flowered beardtongue blooms in May and June on prairies scattered throughout South Dakota.