Distribution: Occurring east of the Cascades crest in Washington; Washington south to California, east to central Idaho and Nevada.

Habitat: Dry, open, rocky slopes from fairly low to middle elevations in the mountains.

Flowers: May-August

Origin: Native

Growth Duration: Perennial

Conservation Status: Not of concern

Pollination: Ants, bees, flies, butterflies, beetles, wasps

Perennial herbs from creeping, somewhat woody rhizomes, the stems several and freely-branching, often woody below, up to 4 dm. tall; herbage glabrous to densely covered with fine, stiff, sharp-pointed hairs.

Leaves in whorls of 4, sessile, narrowly lanceolate to broadly ovate, acute, 5-15 mm. long, the midrib prominent beneath.

Inflorescence of many few-flowered peduncles arising from the axils of several of the upper stem leaves; calyx obsolete; corolla rotate, pale greenish-yellow, 2-4 mm. wide, the 4 lobes much longer than the tube; plants dioecious; ovary 2-celled, inferior.

Fruit dry, densely covered with long, white, flattened, straight or flexuous bristles.

The long, white bristles on the fruits are unique to this species in our area.