Castilleja lutescens
This western North American perennial in the broomrape family grows 30–60 cm tall, is clump-forming and semi-parasitic, with yellow flowers and yellow-tipped bracts that bloom in July, occurring in grasslands, meadows, and open forests.
Common Names
Stiff Yellowish Indian Paintbrush, Yellow Paintbrush, Yellow Indian Paintbrush, Yellowish Paintbrush
Summary
Yellow paintbrush is a perennial native to western North America, from British Columbia and Alberta south to Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. It forms clump-forming, rhizomatous growth with erect stout stems often clustered and branched upward; leaves are linear-lanceolate; inflorescences are bracted terminal spikes with yellow-tipped bracts bearing 1–3 narrow lobes. The calyces are hairy and the corolla is greenish, yielding a yellow floral display that reaches about 12–60 cm in height and flowers during May to August; the plant is semi-parasitic and a slow spreader.
For cultivation, it grows on dry grassy or rocky slopes and open forests in montane and steppe zones, including meadows, and prefers full sun to partial shade with dry to average soil moisture; it is a clump-forming, rhizomatous plant with propagation by seed and a tendency toward slow spread, while pollinators such as Bombus spp. visit the flowers.
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
1-2 feet
Sunlight Requirements
Ideally full sun, partial shade.
Soil Type
Dry, rocky soil
Soil Drainage
Average to dry drainage
Bloom Color
Yellow
Bloom Time
Spring to Summer
Growth Rate
12–24 inches
Seasons of Interest
Spring and Summer
Propagation Methods
Seeds
Attracts Wildlife
Attracts bees
Taxonomy
- Taxonomic Rank
- Species
- Author
- (Greenm.) Rydb.
- Publication
- Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 1: 359 (1900)
Superior Taxa
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Subkingdom
- Pteridobiotina
- Phylum
- Angiosperms
- Order
- Lamiales
- Family
- Orobanchaceae
- Genus
- Castilleja