Kingdom Plantae Family Orobanchaceae Scientific name Triphysaria eriantha | Order Lamiales Genus Triphysaria Rank Species | |
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Similar Triphysaria, Triphysaria pusilla, Triphysaria versicolor, Castilleja attenuata, Orthocarpus | ||
Triphysaria eriantha is a species of flowering plant in the broomrape family, known by the common names johnny-tuck and butter-and-eggs.
It is native to California and southwestern Oregon, where it grows in many types of habitats including chaparral, becoming quite common in some areas.
Description
Triphysaria eriantha is an annual herb producing a hairy purple stem up to about 35 centimeters in maximum height. Like many species in its family, it is a facultative root parasite on other plants, attaching to their roots via haustoria to tap nutrients. Its green or purplish leaves are up to 5 centimeters long and are divided into a few narrow, pointed lobes.
The inflorescence is a spike of flowers. Each flower has a very thin, narrow upper lip which is purple in color, and a wide lower lip which is divided into three pouches. The color of the pouches depends on subspecies: the common ssp. eriantha has white and bright yellow pouches, and the less common coastal ssp. rosea has white pouches tinged with pink.