Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - Ten-petal mentzelia

TEN-PETAL MENTZELIA

File Size: 87 KB

Mentzelia decapetala (Pursh ) Urban & Gilg

Mitchell County, Kansas

Biennial or short-lived perennial

Height: 1-3 feet

Family: Loasaceae - Stickleaf Family

Flowering Period: July, August, September

Also Called:

Chalk lily, candleflower, evening starflower.

Stems:

Erect, stout, 1 to several, branched above; bark whitish, peeling off lower portions of stem.

Leaves:

Alternate, simple, short-stalked below, sessile above, lanceolate, 2 to 6 inches long, .5 to 1.5 inch wide, rough; margins toothed to wavy; tips tapering to points.

Inflorescences:

Cyme-like, 1 or few-flowered, near branch tips; bracts pinnately cleft, some partially fused to ovary.

Flowers:

Showy, 3 to 6 inches in diameter; sepals 5, 1/2 to 2 inches long, pointed; petals 10, white to creamy white, oblanceolate to spatulate, 1 to 3 inches long, 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide, often touch or overlap at flowering; tips pointed; stamens 200-300, shorter than petals.

Fruits:

Capsules, cylindric, 3/4 to 2 inches long, 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide, dried sepals at top; seeds numerous, flattened, winged.

Habitat:

Dry, rocky hillsides, steep banks and slopes, roadsides, disturbed areas, and rocky outcrops. Rarely found in sandy soils.

Distribution:

West 3/5 of Kansas.

Toxicity:

Plants accumulate selenium and can be mildly poisonous.

Forage Value:

Livestock rarely eat ten-petal mentzelia but birds will consume the seeds.

Comments:

The flowers open late in the afternoon and close during the night. Ten-petal mentzelia has a strong, deep taproot and will not withstand transplanting. The rough leaves can cling to clothing or hair.

Resembles Upright mentzelia

Ten-petal mentzelia stamens