Purshia (bitterbrush or cliff-rose) is a small genus of 5–8 species of flowering plants in the family Rosaceae which are native to western North America.
Purshia | |
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Purshia stansburyana | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Rosales |
Family: | Rosaceae |
Subfamily: | Dryadoideae |
Genus: | Purshia DC. ex Poir. |
Type species | |
Purshia tridentata | |
Range | |
Synonyms | |
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Purshia species form deciduous or evergreen shrubs, typically reaching 0.3–5 metres (1–16+1⁄2 feet) tall. The leaves are 1–3 centimetres (1⁄2–1+1⁄4 inches) long, deeply three- to five-lobed, with revolute margins. The flowers are 1–2 cm in diameter, with five white to pale yellow or pink petals and yellow stamens. The fruit is a cluster of dry, slender, leathery achenes which are 2–6 cm long. The roots have nodules that host nitrogen-fixing Frankia bacterium.[1]
The genus was originally placed in the subfamily Rosoideae.[2] In the past, the evergreen species were treated separately in the genus Cowania; this genus is still accepted by some botanists.
The classification of Purshia within the family Rosaceae has been unclear.[3][4] It is now placed in the subfamily Dryadoideae.[2]
Purshia comprises the following species:[5][6]
The following hybrid has been described:[5]
The status of the following species and hybrids is unresolved:[5]
The genus is native to western North America, where the species grow in dry climates from southeast British Columbia, Canada, south throughout the western United States to northern Mexico.