Stems above ground, caudices, branching or sometimes simple, short or elongate. Leaves usually persistent (withering in early summer in D. cymosa subsp. marcescens and D. parva); petiole absent; blade mostly laminar, sometimes subterete, turgid ± throughout. Cymes: branches 2-3(-6), simple or bifurcate; cincinni circinate or not. Pedicels erect to pendent, 1-35 mm. Flowers: petals erect to, rarely, ascending (sometimes tips outcurved), corolla barely open, tubular or tightly 5-gonal (loosely tubular, not tightly 5-gonal in D. farinosa), free margin of each petal usually connivent to adjacent petals (usually not connivent in D. farinosa); pistils usually connivent and erect in flower (suberect and not connivent in D. stolonifera), nearly erect or slightly ascending, not gibbous in fruit.

Distribution

sw United States, nw Mexico

Discussion

Species ca. 40 (15 in the flora).

G. A. Levin and T. W. Mulroy (1985) studied floral morphology, nectar production, and breeding systems in 21 taxa of subg. Dudleya from throughout the north–south range. A few are pollinated primarily by hummingbirds, although also having high self-fertility, and several primarily by bees and long-tongued flies; all those studied were self-compatible. Levin and Mulroy concluded that the breeding system of Dudleya favors outcrossing but allows self-fertilization. Subgenus Dudleya is notable in that the epipetalous filaments are usually shorter than antisepalous ones and adnate higher.

Selected References

Levin, G. A. and T. W. Mulroy. 1985. Floral morphology, nectar production, and breeding systems in Dudleya subgenus Dudleya (Crassulaceae). Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist. 21: 57–70.

Nakai, K. M. 1987. Some new and reconsidered California Dudleya (Crassulaceae). Madroño 34: 334–353.

Lower Taxa

Dudleya abramsii, Dudleya arizonica, Dudleya candelabrum, Dudleya cespitosa, Dudleya cymosa, Dudleya farinosa, Dudleya gnoma, Dudleya greenei, Dudleya lanceolata, Dudleya palmeri, Dudleya parva, Dudleya pulverulenta, Dudleya saxosa, Dudleya stolonifera, Dudleya verityi

Key

1	Petals connate 4.5–10 mm (1/2 their lengths); cyme branches often twisted at base (flowers on underside); pedicels pendent, declined, spreading, or ascending to erect in flower, usually bent sharply upward from near middle in fruit; rosettes solitary, 5–60 cm diam., blade often chalky white.	> 2
2	Caudices 1–4 cm diam.; rosettes 10–35-leaved, blade apices acute or usually long-acuminate; pedicels erect or ascending; petals red to apricot yellow; desert mountains	Dudleya arizonica
2	Caudices 4–10 cm diam.; rosettes 30–80-leaved, blade apices acuminate to cuspidate; pedicels declined or pendent; petals red; coastal side of mountains	Dudleya pulverulenta
1	Petals connate 1–3(–4.5) mm (to 1/3 their lengths); cyme branches not twisted (flowers on topside); pedicels ascending to erect in flower, not bent in fruit; rosettes 1–300, 0.8–35 cm diam., blade pale to bright green or blue-green, gray-blue, or gray-green, sometimes becoming purplish or reddish.	> 3
3	Caudices with axillary branches; unripe follicles ascending; calyces 3–4 × 5.5–7 mm	Dudleya stolonifera
3	Caudices simple or branching apically, axillary branches absent; unripe follicles erect; calyces 3–9 × 3–9 mm.	> 4
4	Rosettes 10–30 cm diam., 20–45-leaved; caudices simple, 2–8 cm diam.; leaf blades usually not farinose, 3–7 cm wide; insular	Dudleya candelabrum
4	Rosettes usually 1–15(–35) cm diam., 5–25(–65)-leaved; caudices simple or branched, 0.5–3.5 cm diam.; leaf blades sometimes farinose, usually to 3 cm wide, rarely to 6 cm; mainland and insular.	> 5
5	Leaves withering in early summer; cymes mostly 2–4-branched.	> 6
6	Petals pale or bright yellow, mustard yellow, or red, apex mostly narrowly acute; pedicels 5–15 mm; leaf blades 0.5–1.2 cm wide	Dudleya cymosa
6	Petals pale yellow, sometimes red-lineolate, apex broadly acute; pedicels	Dudleya parva
5	Leaves persistent; cymes usually 1–6-branched.	> 7
7	Caudices usually 10–60 cm; rosette leaf blades usually 3–8 mm thick.	> 8
8	Corollas loosely tubular, free margins of each petal usually not connivent to adjacent petals, petals pale yellow; rosette leaf blades ovate-oblong	Dudleya farinosa
8	Corollas tightly 5-gonal, free margins of each petal usually connivent to adjacent petals, petals whitish, pale yellow, or bright yellow to orange or red; rosette leaf blades oblong or oblong-lanceolate to oblong-obovate.	> 9
9	Petals pale yellow or whitish, 8–12 mm, tips sometimes out- curved; insular	Dudleya greenei
9	Petals bright yellow to orange or red, 8–16 mm, tips erect; insular or mainland.	> 10
10	Rosette leaf blades 0.5–4 cm wide; petals mostly bright yellow to red	Dudleya cespitosa
10	Rosette leaf blades 1.5–5 cm wide; petals red or bright yellow marked with red and appearing orange	Dudleya palmeri
7	Caudices usually 0.1–10 cm; rosette leaf blades 1–6 mm thick.	> 11
11	Pedicels usually 5–20 mm.	> 12
12	Rosette leaf blades usually oblanceolate to spatulate, rhombic-oblanceolate, oblong, elliptic, ovate, or sometimes triangular-oblong, 1.5–12(–17) × 0.5–6 cm, apex acute to acuminate or cuspidate or subobtuse; petal apices narrowly acute; cyme branches simple or 1–3 times bifurcate; cincinni 1–5(–17) cm	Dudleya cymosa
12	Rosette leaf blades oblong-lanceolate, 3–15 × 0.5–2.5 cm, apex narrowly acute; petal apices acute; cyme branches simple or bifurcate; cincinni 1–18 cm	Dudleya saxosa
11	Pedicels usually 1–6(–17) mm.	> 13
13	Petals pale yellow or straw yellow to medium yellow or almost white (rarely bright yellow) and often red-lineolate, 1.5–4.5 mm wide; rosette leaf blades 0.6–6(–11) × 0.2–2 cm; floral shoots 2–25 cm.	> 14
14	Rosette leaves linear or elliptic to oblong-lanceolate or tapering from base; cincinni 3–15 cm	Dudleya abramsii
14	Rosette leaves triangular-ovate; cincinni 1–3 cm	Dudleya gnoma
13	Petals bright yellow to usually red, 2.5–5 mm wide; rosette leaf blades 2–30 × 0.4–4 cm; floral shoots (3–)15–120 cm.	> 15
15	Caudices 1–3 cm diam.; leaf blade bases 1–3 cm wide	Dudleya lanceolata
15	Caudices 0.2–1 cm diam.; leaf blade bases 0.5–0.8 cm wide	Dudleya verityi