Mount Hamilton jewelflower facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mount Hamilton jewelflower |
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|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Streptanthus
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| Species: |
callistus
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The Streptanthus callistus, also known as the Mount Hamilton jewelflower, is a very special and rare plant. It belongs to the mustard family. This plant is endemic to Santa Clara County, California. This means it grows naturally only in this specific area and nowhere else in the world! You can find it in just a few spots around Mount Hamilton.
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About the Mount Hamilton Jewelflower
The Mount Hamilton jewelflower is a type of plant called an annual herb. This means it grows from a seed, flowers, produces new seeds, and then dies all within one year. It's a small plant, usually growing only about 8 or 9 centimeters (about 3-3.5 inches) tall. Its stem has a slightly rough or "bristly" feel near the bottom.
Where It Lives
This unique plant prefers certain types of places to grow. It likes to live in areas called chaparral, which are dry shrublands. It also grows in woodlands, which are areas with trees. Sometimes, you can find it on dry scree, which are slopes covered in loose, broken rocks. These habitats are all found around Mount Hamilton in California.
What It Looks Like
The Mount Hamilton jewelflower has small leaves. They are oval-shaped and have tiny "teeth" along their edges. Each leaf is less than 2 centimeters (about 0.8 inches) long.
Its Flowers
The flowers of the Mount Hamilton jewelflower grow in a cluster. This cluster is called an inflorescence. It looks like a long stalk with flowers, which is known as a raceme. Interestingly, the flowers at the very top of this stalk are "sterile." This means they cannot produce seeds.
The fertile flowers, which can make seeds, are found lower down on the stalk. These flowers have purple-green parts called sepals. Sepals are like small leaves that protect the flower bud. These sepals are a bit bristly and less than a centimeter long. The petals of these flowers are purple and flare out at the tip.
The sterile flowers at the top look a bit different. They have narrow, long, and smooth purple sepals.
Its Fruit
After the fertile flowers bloom, they produce a fruit. This fruit is called a silique. It's shaped like a cylinder and can be up to 2 or 2.5 centimeters (about 0.8 to 1 inch) long. The silique is also covered in small bristles, just like the base of the plant's stem. Inside the silique are the seeds that will grow into new jewelflowers next year.
