Species: Sidalcea oregana
Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Oregon Checker-mallow is an herbaceous perennial with erect stems that are 2-15 dm tall and arising from a branched rootcrown that surmounts a taproot. The basal leaves have long petioles and round blades that are deeply palmately divided into 5-9 nearly linear lobes. The alternate stem leaves become smaller with few lobes upward. The lower stems and leaves are sparsely covered with star-shaped hairs. Short-stalked flowers are borne in a terminal spike. Some flowers are bisexual, while in others, the anthers are sterile or lacking. Each pink flower has a 5-lobed, hairy calyx that is 4-9 mm long and 5 separate, oblong, shallowly bilobed petals that are 15-20 mm long. Numerous stamens are united into a tube surrounding the style. The numerous stigmas are linear. The fruit, which is 2-3 mm long, is a flattened-globose capsule with many sections, giving it the appearance of a peeled orange.
Classification
Dicotyledoneae
Malvales
Malvaceae
Sidalcea
NatureServe
Classification
Ecology and Life History
Oregon Checker-mallow is an herbaceous perennial with erect stems that are 2-15 dm tall and arising from a branched rootcrown that surmounts a taproot. The basal leaves have long petioles and round blades that are deeply palmately divided into 5-9 nearly linear lobes. The alternate stem leaves become smaller with few lobes upward. The lower stems and leaves are sparsely covered with star-shaped hairs. Short-stalked flowers are borne in a terminal spike. Some flowers are bisexual, while in others, the anthers are sterile or lacking. Each pink flower has a 5-lobed, hairy calyx that is 4-9 mm long and 5 separate, oblong, shallowly bilobed petals that are 15-20 mm long. Numerous stamens are united into a tube surrounding the style. The numerous stigmas are linear. The fruit, which is 2-3 mm long, is a flattened-globose capsule with many sections, giving it the appearance of a peeled orange.
Conservation Status
PS - Sidalcea oregana ssp. oregana var. calva and S. oregana ssp. valida are listed Endangered, therefore S. oregana has partial status (G. Davis 1/15/04).