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Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Annual Forbs Around Las Vegas, Vegetation Around Las Vegas
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower is often not noticed until it dries and becomes spiny

General: Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) is a small annual forb with broad basal leaves on long petioles and stout spines on the short flowering stalk. The flowers are yellow, but tiny and hard to see.

This plant is quite stiff and dries to an upright, spiny mass that stands long into the winter. People often confuse the dried plants with cactus.

Devil's Spineflower is a common component of desert vegetation communities on sandy and gravel soils in the Lower Sonoran (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub) life zones.

Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Broad basal leaves on long petioles

Family: Buckwheat (Polygonaceae).

Other Names: rigid spiny herb, spiny-herb

Plant Form: low, compact, spiny.

Height: Usually about 2 inches, to 6 inches.

Stems: None.

Leaves: Basal; petiole long, blade less than 1-inch long, oblanceolate.

Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Dried flowering stalk during winter: tiny "cactus"

Flowers: Tiny, yellow, hidden among spiny bracts (small and nondescript).

Seeds:

Habitat: Sandy and rocky desert soils.

Elevation: About 6,000 feet.

Distribution: California to Utah and Arizona, and south into NW Mexico.

Comments:

Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Leaf dorsal surface: petiole long, blade short and wide, hairy
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Leaf ventral surface: petiole long, blade short and wide, very hairy
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
The leaves fade early leaving only the flowering stalk
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Tiny yellow flowers surrounded by spines
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Flowers: tiny, yellow, and hidden among spiny bracts
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Flowers: tiny, yellow, and hidden among spiny bracts
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Dried flower stalks can carpet the ground during fall
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Dried flower stalks can carpet the ground during fall
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Dried plants persist into the next year ...
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
... often covering the ground with nasty, stiff spines.
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)
Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida) Devil's Spineflower (Chorizanthe rigida)

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate. Names generally follow the USDA database.
copyright; Last updated 240616

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