About Scrophularia atrata Pennell
Common Names and Family
Scrophularia atrata is an uncommon flowering plant species in the figwort family, with the common names black-flowered figwort and darkflowered figwort.
Endemic Range
This species is endemic to California, and is only known from a section of the Central Coast Ranges located in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties.
Habitat and Soil
It grows in calcareous and diatomaceous soils of coastal canyons at elevations no higher than 500 meters.
Recorded Occurrences
128 occurrences of this species have been observed on Calflora.org alone. Per NatureServe data, 38 out of 62 total recorded occurrences are historic.
Stem Characteristics
This plant is a perennial herb that grows an erect, four-sided stem that can reach up to one meter tall, or slightly taller. Its texture ranges from somewhat hairy to densely woolly.
Leaf Structure
Its leaves have toothed oval blades up to 10 centimeters long, and are attached to the stem by long petioles.
Inflorescence Structure
The inflorescence is a wide-open panicle, with several hairy, glandular branches that bear flowers.
Flower Shape
Each flower has an urn-shaped corolla with a rounded body and an open mouth at the top, edged with hoodlike lobes.
Flower Color
The corolla is a deep, dark red color that can be nearly black.
Fruit Characteristics
The fruit is a capsule just under one centimeter long that contains many seeds.
