Marah gilensis
Leafl. Bot. Observ. Crit. 2: 36. 1910.
Common names: Gila manroot
Basionym: Megarrhiza gilensis Greene Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 8: 97. 1881
Leaf blades deeply 5–7-lobed, 4–10 cm wide, surfaces not glaucous. Flowers: sepals (pistillate) vestigial; petals 3–4 mm (pistillate) or 3–3.5 mm (staminate), corolla white, rotate; staminodia present but very inconspicuous in pistillate flowers. Capsules yellowish green, globose to subglobose or short-ellipsoid, 2.5–3 cm, surface densely echinate, spinules rigid, 2–3(–5) mm. Seeds 2–4, ovate to suborbiculate, slightly compressed, 10–12 mm. 2n = 30.
Phenology: Flowering (Dec–)Feb–Apr.
Habitat: Desert flats and washes, stream beds, canyon bottoms and slopes, desert scrub, chaparral, oak, riparian zones
Elevation: (500–)600–1500 m
Distribution
Ariz., N.Mex., Mexico (Sonora).
Discussion
Selected References
None.
Lower Taxa
None.