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Skeletonweed (Eriogonum deflexum)
Perennial Forbs Around Las Vegas, Vegetation Around Las Vegas
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Skeletonweed in flower; flowers mostly hang down from stems

General: Skeletonweed (Eriogonum deflexum), also called Flattop Buckwheat, is a perennial forb with a small basal rosette of thick, dark green leaves, usually a single erect main stem to about 18-inches tall, and many terminal branches. The terminal branchlets are thin and wispy. Flowers hang from the terminal branchlets. This species is similar to Desert Trumpet, except that the stems are not inflated.

Stems not inflated. Flowers hang down. Three triangular bracts at branching points. Leaf with dense white wool on underside. Leaves on petioles, dull green, rounded (heart-shaped, 3 curving veins).

Skeletonweed is a common component of vegetation communities in dry, well-drained sandy and gravelly areas on desert flats, bajadas, and moderate slopes in the lower mountains in the Lower Sonoran (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub and Pinyon-Juniper Woodland) life zones.

Family: Buckwheat (Polygonaceae).

Other Names: Eriogonum inflatus deflatum, Flattop Buckwheat.

Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Dried Skeletonweed during winter

Plant Form: Biannual forb. In the first year, only a basal rosette of leaves; in the second year, plant produces a single main stem with many terminal branches and many tiny flowers.

Height: Flowering stalk usually about 2 feet; to 5-feet tall.

Stems: Not inflated below nodes; contrast with Desert Trumpet. Three triangular bracts at branching points

Leaves: Basal rosette: blades to about 2-inches long, oblong, somewhat hairy above, coarsely hairy below.

Flowers: Inflorescence: many slender branches. Flowers tiny, oblong, 1-3 mm, white to reddish; hang from terminal stems.

Seeds: Achene; small (2 mm).

Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Sometimes hard to see

Habitat: Dry, well-drained sandy and gravelly on desert flats, bajadas, and moderate slopes in the lower mountains.

Elevation: To about 3,500 feet.

Distribution: California to western Arizona, and south into northwestern Mexico.

Comments: Eriogonum is a large genus with many species that are hard to identify.

Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Skeletonweed; young plant without flowers
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Skeletonweed in flower
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaves
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaves
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaf, upper surface: leaves thickened
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaf, lower surface: leaves thickened
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaf, lower surface
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Basal leaf, lower surface: very woolly
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Three triangular bracts at branching nodes (two visible in this view)
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Three triangular bracts at branching nodes (all three visible in this view)
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Flowers hang down from terminal branches
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Flowers hang down from terminal branches
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Flowers hang down from terminal branches
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Flowers hang down from terminal branches
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum) Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum) Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Entire plant during winter
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Occasionally multiple stems are seen
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
These plants can cover the landscape
Skeletonweed (Eriogonum inflatum var. deflatum)
Dried flowers

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate. Names generally follow the USDA database.
copyright; Last updated 240621

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