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Balsamorhiza sagittata (Pursh) Nutt.

Arrowleaf balsamroot

Arrowleaf balsamroot is named for its wide, sharply pointed leaves and its pine-scented, sticky sap. These plants are members of the sunflower family.

Plants: 8–24″ (20–60 cm) in height, with a hairy, glandular stem. The sticky sap smells strongly of pine.

Leaves: Sharply pointed, roughly triangular, silvery gray, and hairy, sometimes rough, especially underneath. Basal leaves are up to 1½′ (50 cm) long. Further up the stem, they become linear or narrowly oval, and smaller. Leaves have smooth edges.

Flowers: The bright, sunny flowers, like miniature sunflowers, are 1½″ (3.8 cm) to 3″ (7.6 cm) across. Flowers appear from May to July.

Fruits: Hairless achenes about ¼″ (8 mm) long.

Habitats: They appear at altitudes between 4300′ (1.3 km) and 1.6 mi (2.5 km), in mountain forests, grasslands, and desert scrub.

Balsamorhiza sagittata (arrowleaf balsamroot)

Leaves near the base of the plant resemble arrowheads with wavy edges, though smaller leaves are more rounded.

Edibility: Despite its bitter sap, the entire arrowleaf balsamroot is edible. The large taproots are especially palatable.

Online References:

The Oregon Flora Image Project

Wildflowers, Ferns & Trees of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah

Www.calflora.org

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Plants for a Future

SEINet—the Southwest Environmental Information Network

Flora of North America

 

Balsamorhiza sagittata (arrowleaf balsamroot)

5/28/2009 · Mesa Verde, Cortez, Colorado ID is uncertain

KingdomPlantaePlants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)
SubkingdomTracheobiontaVascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
DivisionMagnoliophytaFlowering plants, also known as angiosperms
ClassMagnoliopsidaDicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
SubclassAsteridaeA large class that encompasses asters
OrderAsteralesFlowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
FamilyAsteraceaeThe aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers
GenusBalsamorhizaFrom the Greek balsamos, “balsam,” and rhiza, “root,” alluding to the plants having roots with a balsamic or resinous smell or exudation
SpeciessagittataFrom the Latin for “arrow” and hence sagitate

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Range:

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Balsamorhiza sagittata description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.

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