Genus Phyllodoce Rank Species | ||
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Similar Phyllodoce, Cassiope mertensiana, Rhododendron albiflorum, Kalmia microphylla, Vaccinium scoparium | ||
Phyllodoce empetriformis, the pink mountain-heather or pink mountain-heath, is found in mountainous regions of western North America in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. Its southern range includes the Klamath Range in northern California and Oregon.
Phyllodoce empetriformis is a low matting shrub with distinctive leaves which roll under themselves so tightly they resemble pine needles. It bears attractive flowers in shades of pink and purple.
Botanical description
This common (in its native bioregion) evergreen alpine shrub bears its red-purple flower clustered at the end of the stem in leaf axils. The flowers of Phyllodoce glanduliflora, for comparison, are yellow or green-white. In Phyllodoce empetriformis, the campanulate corolla is twice as long as the calyx (compared to Phyllodoce gladuliflora, which has a corolla just barely twice as long as the calyx and is urn-shaped). Its sepals and filaments are glabrous or barely hairy (compared to Phyllodoce glanduliflora which has pubescent sepals and filaments).
