Twist-flower

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Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Twist-flower

Morphology

Stem

Erect, simple or rarely branched above, glabrous, often purplish.

Leaves

Alternate, spreading, linear-lanceolate, .8 to 6 inches long, 1/10 to 3/5 inch wide, glabrous; margins entire or remotely toothed; tip pointed; sessile or short-stalked; basal leaves absent.

Inflorescence

Raceme, 10- to 30-flowered, terminal.

Flower

Spreading or drooping; stalk 1/10 to 1/5 inch long; calyx urn-shaped; sepals 4, ovate to lance-ovate, 1/5 to 2/5 inch long, to 1/8 inch wide, glabrous; tips pointed, dark purple; petals 4, fiddle-shaped, 1/2 to 4/5 inch long, lavender with dark veins to dark purple, entire to notched; stamens 6; outer 2 included, filaments distinct; inner 4 projecting out, filaments united below in pairs.

Fruit

Pod, spreading-ascending,2.4 to 4 inches long, up to 1/10 inch wide; seeds circular, flattened, smooth, brown.

Ecology

Habitat

Prairie hillsides and pastures; sandy or gravelly soils.

Distribution

South-central Kansas.

Practical Information

Uses

Native Americans in the Southwest used a related species Streptanthus cordatus as greens and the juice from the roots as drops for sore eyes.

Additional Notes