Plant Name
Scientific Name: Erysimum capitatum
Common Names: Sanddune Wallflower, Sand-dune Wallflower, Western Wallflower
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Biennial, Perennial (short-lived)
Growth Habit: Subshrub, Herb/Forb
Arizona Native Status: Native
Habitat: Upland, Mountain. This wildflower grows in open, sunny areas with well-drained or sandy soil.
Flower Color: Orange, Yellow, Red, Cream, Lavender to purplish (rare)
Flowering Season: Spring, Summer
Height: Up to 4 feet (122 cm) tall
Description: The flowers are clustered at the stem tips. The individual flowers have 4 oval to egg-shaped petals and 4 narrowly oblong sepals. The flowers are followed by narrowly linear, upright seed capsules. The leaves are green, alternate, toothed or not, and linear to spoon-shaped. The stems are erect, and the plants often have only a single main stem.
Special Characteristics
Butterfly Plant – The flowers attract butterflies like this Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) above, which makes this showy wildflower a great addition to a native plant butterfly garden.
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Dilleniidae
Order: Capparales
Family: Brassicaceae – Mustard family
Genus: Erysimum L. – wallflower
Species: Erysimum capitatum (Douglas ex Hook.) Greene – sanddune wallflower
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