Family – Scrophulariaceae
Stems:
Leaves:
N/A
Inflorescence:
N/A
Flowers:
Flowering – February – June.
Habitat – Dolomite glades.
Origin – Native to North America.
Other information – This striking little species can be found in just one county in Alabama. The plant was only recently discovered in the Bibb County area as the unique glade habitat there was explored.
This species is easy to identify because of its bright yellow bracts and habitat. Another species, C. coccinea (L.) Spreng., has a yellow-flowered form but the latter has much more pale flowers and bracts which are 3-lobed.
The genus name Castilleja was given in 1781 in honor of Spanish botanist Domingo Castillejo (1744-1793). Castillejo was a Professor of Botany in Cadiz, Spain. The man who discovered the genus, Jose Celestino Mutis, was born in Cadiz but spent most of his life in Columbia. He found and named the plant in Columbia and it was officially published in the Supplementum Plantarum in 1781.
The species epithet is given in honor of Dr. Robert Kral (1926 – ) of Vanderbilt University and the Botanical Research Institute of Texas. Kral is one the premier botanists for the southeastern United States.
Alabama Distribution:
Photographs taken at Bibb County Glades, 3-5-05.