Kingdom Plantae Family Scrophulariaceae Scientific name Scrophularia californica Rank Species | Order Lamiales Genus Scrophularia Higher classification Scrophularia | |
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Similar Scrophularia, Scrophulariaceae, Diplacus aurantiacus, Acmispon glaber, Lupinus bicolor | ||
Scrophularia californica is a flowering plant in the figwort family which is known by the common names California figwort and California bee plant.
It is native to the western United States, including many habitats in California, and in British Columbia.
Description
Scrophularia californica is an unassuming plant with triangular, toothed, blue-green leaves in pairs opposite each other on a spindly, squared stem.
The brownish-magenta flowers are rounded, hollow buds about a centimeter long with two long upper lobes.
This species is a strong bee attractant and also serves as a host plant for Variable Checkerspot larvae.
References
Scrophularia californica Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA