About Clarkia xantiana A.Gray
Clarkia xantiana A.Gray is a species of flowering plant in the evening primrose family, with the common name gunsight clarkia. This species is endemic to California; within the state, it occurs in the southern Sierra Nevada, its foothills, and the adjacent Transverse Ranges. It is an erect annual herb that produces linear to lance-shaped leaves, each reaching up to 6 centimeters in length. Its inflorescence bears both open blooming flowers and closed buds. As petals begin to bloom from one side of the flower, the sepals remain fused together. Individual petals grow up to 2 centimeters long, and are typically light to medium purple in color. They sometimes bear a dark, ringed spot on the petals of the upper whorl. Each petal has a narrow lower claw and a wider upper blade; the blade has two lobes at its tip, with a small tooth between the two lobes.
