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San Diego pitcher sage facts for kids

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San Diego pitcher sage
Scientific classification
Genus:
Lepechinia
Species:
ganderi

Lepechinia ganderi is a special and rare plant. People often call it the San Diego pitcher sage. It's part of the mint family, just like the mint you might use in food! This plant is only found in a few places. You can see it growing in northern Baja California (which is in Mexico) and southern San Diego County, California (in the USA). It loves to grow in a type of bushy area called chaparral, especially in the Peninsular Ranges.

What Does San Diego Pitcher Sage Look Like?

Lepechinia ganderi is a shrub that smells nice. It has thin branches. These branches are covered in rough hairs and sticky parts called resin glands.

Its leaves are shaped like a spear, which we call "lance-shaped." Sometimes, the edges of the leaves have small teeth.

How Do Its Flowers Grow?

The flowers grow in a special cluster called a raceme inflorescence. This means the flowers are arranged along a central stem. Each flower sits on a short stalk, known as a pedicel.

Each flower has a base made of long, pointed leaf-like parts called sepals. Below these sepals is a tube-shaped flower part called a corolla. This corolla is usually white or light lavender. The opening of the flower looks like it has "lips."

What About Its Fruit?

After the colorful corolla falls off, a small, dark, and smooth fruit grows. This fruit stays attached to the sepals.

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