

Wholeleaf paintbrush plants are best grown in 4-inch Good host species include gray rabbitbrush ( Ericameria nauseosa), fringed sage ( Artemisia frigida), Michaux’s sage (Artemisia michauxiana), pineleaf penstemon (Penstemon pinifolius), Cusick’s hyssop (Agastache cusickii), and Jame’s buckwheat (Eriogonum jamesii). When the plants are 2 to 4 inches tall, the seedlings must transplanted into a pot along with a suitable host plant to continue growing and develop sufficiently to survive transplanting. Young seedlings grow comparatively rapidly. Seeds emerge more uniformly and quickly following an 8-week stratification period. Difficult or impossible to propagate from cuttings. Survival after transplanting to the garden is dependent on presence of a host whose roots form a solid root ball. Plants grow at a fast pace after transplanting and can easily be brought to bloom in pots. Soon thereafter, plants must be paired in pots with an appropriate host species. Transplanting: Wholeleaf paintbrush can be seeded in flats and germinated in the absence of a host species. Moisture management decisions should also account for the needs of the host species. Moisture Tolerance: Adapted to relatively dry conditions and requires some supplemental irrigation only in locations where summer moisture is infrequent. Soil: Adapted to a range of soil types and conditions, including alkaline soils, but requires well-drained conditions. This species commonly grows at elevations ranging from 3,000 to 8,500 feet. Often found within a wide range of plant communities, including woodlands, mesas, grassy plains, dry prairies, and slopes typically on gravelly or rocky soil. Native Habitat: Castilleja integra is native to the high plains and foothills of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Texas. To satisfy the hemiparasitic nature of wholeleaf paintbrush, as well as maintain the aesthetic value of the garden, a plant species with good host traits and with complimentary size and color should be chosen as a propagation companion. Wholeleaf paintbrush can be used in xeric beds or borders. Plants are herbaceous, dying back to below the ground each fall and sprouting underground crowns each spring. Mature plants are about 12 to 15 inches tall and produce up to a dozen flowering stems. The intense color exhibited by wholeleaf paintbrush is dominating and the plants are best used to intentionally draw the eye to a specific part of the garden. Flowers of wholeleaf paintbrush are brilliant orange-red and bloom over a significant period of late spring and summer, typically from May into July. Wholeleaf paintbrush adapts more easily to cultivation than most other species from this genus, meaning that with the use of proper techniques, it can be cultivated and marketed as a horticultural product. Appropriate host plants are essential for maintaining health and ultimately for survival of paintbrush growing in either pots or the garden. The key reason for minimal use in gardens is production barriers caused by the hemiparasitic (partially parasitic) nature of this genus. Uncommon in cultivated gardens, species in the Indian paintbrush genus are worthy of greater attention from the landscape industry. Wildflowers, like all natural, cultural and historic things in the park, are protected and preserved for the enjoyment of all.Scientfic Name: Castilleja integra Common Name: Wholeleaf Paintbrush, Wholeleaf Indian Paintbrushĭescription: Wholeleaf paintbrush is one of the universally recognized and adored wildflowers of the southwestern U.S. Please leave flowers for other visitors to enjoy. This is not an all inclusive list: for a more complete list of plants, read the Plants of Lava Beds brochure.

Dates should be taken as rough guidance, since variable seasonal weather does affect when these plants bloom, and in differing ways: A late, cold spring my cause one flower to bloom profusely through mid-summer, while another may skip blooming altogether. Listed below, in order of blooming season, are some of the most common or notable species. Instead, plants stagger their blooms over the course of the warmer seasons providing a long, varying flower show that starts when the snow melts in March and lasts into September. Unlike arid landscapes of the Southwest and elsewhere, the wildflowers here do not come-and-go in one dramatic spring pulse. A rare white morph of slender penstemon, penstemon gracilentus
