About Palmerella debilis A.Gray
Palmerella is a genus of flowering plants in the Campanulaceae family. This genus contains only one known species, Palmerella debilis, which was long known under the synonym Lobelia dunnii. This species is native to eight counties in southern California: San Diego, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and Monterey, as well as the northern region of Baja California. The oldest published name for this species is Palmerella debilis, which was coined by Asa Gray in 1876. In 1889, Edward Lee Greene proposed moving this species to the genus Lobelia, but could not use the combination name Lobelia debilis. This name had already been assigned to a different plant species by Linnaeus filius in 1782, so Greene created the new replacement name Lobelia dunnii for this taxon. Most modern botanical publications favor returning to the use of Asa Gray's older, valid name Palmerella debilis. Two subspecies of Palmerella debilis are currently recognized: Palmerella debilis subsp. debilis, which is found in Baja California, and Palmerella debilis subsp. serrata (A.Gray) Lammers, which is found in both California and Baja California.
