Hummingbird Trumpet
Epilobium canum
(Zauschneria californica)
Observed along Camp Creek in Maricopa Co., Arizona, Oct. 2009. Habitat was mesquite bosque/riparian corridor boundary.
FLOWER: Bright red, long, tubular flowers attended by hummingbirds.
There are four lobes and each has a distinct notch at the tip giving the appearance of four sets of two lobes. Mostly blooming late summer into autumn.
PERENNIAL HERB: Above ground entirely herbaceous from a perennial root
stock.
LEAVES: Elyptic leaves have nearly smooth margins and are mostly
alternate but may be opposite on lower stems.
RANGE: Uncommon in the Sonoran Desert. Found in moist, shady
canyons mostly above 900 m elevation. In partial shade of trees of cliff faces.
FRUIT: Long-beaked capsules develop below the flower calyx/petals
(inferior ovary).
UNARMED.