About Luetkea pectinata (Pursh) Kuntze
Luetkea is a genus of herbaceous plants in the Rosaceae family that only accepts one species: Luetkea pectinata, commonly called partridgefoot or luetkea. This species is a mat-forming semi-shrub, endemic to cold areas of western North America. Its distribution includes subarctic regions of Alaska, Yukon, and the western Northwest Territories, as well as subalpine to alpine regions of British Columbia, southwestern Alberta, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, northern California, and western Montana. The inflorescence of L. pectinata is a dense, erect terminal cluster that grows 10 to 150 mm high, holding several to many short-stalked flowers. Its leaves measure 7 to 20 mm long and are two or three times three-dissected, with the final segments being linear or lanceolate. The fruit it produces is a follicle that contains several seeds. The genus Luetkea is named to commemorate Count Luetke, a Russian captain and explorer active in the early 1800s who mapped the Alaskan coastline.
