Penstemon

Shrubs, subshrubs, or herbs, perennial; caudex woody, sometimes herbaceous (sect. Erianthera, sect. Coerulei, sect. Glabri, sect. Penstemon) or rhizomelike. Stems prostrate, erect, ascending, or decumbent, glabrous or variously hairy, sometimes also glandular. Leaves deciduous in shrubby species, rarely persistent, basal and cauline, sometimes only cauline, rarely only basal, opposite, rarely whorled, alternate, or subalternate distally; petiole present or absent; blade leathery or not, margins entire or variously toothed (1-pinnatifid in P. dissectus), distal leaf blade not needlelike or scalelike. Inflorescences terminal, thyrses, sometimes racemiform or paniculiform due to expansion or reduction of cymose lateral branches and/or number of verticillasters; bracts present. Pedicels present, rarely absent; bracteoles smaller than calyx lobes, not surrounding calyx of flowers they subtend. Flowers bisexual; sepals 5, proximally connate, calyx essentially radially symmetric, short-campanulate, rarely short-tubular, lobes ± ovate, lanceolate, round, elliptic, oblong, obovate, oblanceolate, truncate, linear, or orbiculate; corolla ± white, pink, red, blue, purple, lilac, violet, or crimson, rarely yellow or orange, bilaterally symmetric, rarely nearly radially symmetric, ± bilabiate or bilabiate and personate, rarely nearly regular, salverform, tubular, funnelform, ventricose, ampliate, ventricose-ampliate, tubular-funnelform, or tubular-salverform, tube base not spurred or gibbous, lobes 5, abaxial 3, adaxial 2; stamens 4, proximally adnate to corolla, didynamous, filaments glabrous or glandular-puberulent proximally, rarely pubescent proximally and/or distally; staminode 1, threadlike to straplike; nectaries epistaminal; ovary 2-locular, placentation axile; stigma capitate. Fruits capsules, dehiscence septicidal, not densely packed with white, membranous hairs. Seeds (2–)5–40(–100+), tan, brown, or black, angled, rarely reniform, patelliform, disciform, rounded, or angled-elongate, wings absent, sometimes narrow. × = 8.

3-6 hours of sun per day, with protection from intense mid-day sun

Water sparingly, allowing the mix to nearly dry out between watering.

Penstemon

Penstemon

Gallery

Share With Your Friends

How to Grow

Characteristics

Benefits

Attracts

More Info

Taxonomy