Plant Name
Scientific Name: Talinum paniculatum
Synonyms: Portulaca paniculata, Talinum chrysanthum, T. reflexum, T. spathulatum
Common Names: Jewels of Opar, Jewels-of-Opar, Pink Baby-breath, Pink Baby's Breath, Big Talinum
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Subshrub, Herb/Forb
Arizona Native Status: Native
Habitat: Desert, Upland, Riparian. It is often found in or near desert or upland washes and riparian areas. This attractive plant is also cultivated as a garden ornamental and will often reseed itself.
Flower Color: Pink
Flowering Season: Summer, Fall. This wildflower blooms after the summer monsoon rains have begun.
Height: Up to 5 feet (1.5 m) tall
Description: The small flowers are in large, conspicuous panicles (branched inflorescences) that are either erect or leaning. The individual flowers have 5 egg-shaped petals in varying shades of pink, yellow anthers with pink anther filaments, a rounded, green superior ovary, and sepals that are usually deciduous. The flowers are followed by small, rounded, green to red seed capsules. The leaves are green, fleshy, hairless, alternate, and elliptic to egg-shaped with a tapering leaf base and smooth margins. The stems are erect, hairless, usually reddish in color, and semi-woody. The plants have thick, fleshy roots.
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Caryophyllidae
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Portulacaceae – Purslane family
Genus: Talinum Adans. – fameflower
Species: Talinum paniculatum (Jacq.) Gaertn. – jewels of Opar
More About This Plant