Castilleja attenuata

Common Names

Valley Tassels, Attenuate Indian Paintbrush, Narrowleaf Owl's-Clover

Summary

Valley tassels is an annual herb native to western North America from British Columbia to Baja California, with erect, usually unbranched stems up to about 40 cm tall; leaves are narrowly linear-lanceolate; the inflorescence is a dense narrow green-white spike; bracts are three-lobed and green with white tips; flowers are two-liped, with an upper lip beak-like and a lower lip narrowly three-pouched with three slender teeth; the calyx is tubular, 20–23 mm long, very hairy and two-cleft; the plant is hemiparasitic, tapping host roots for nutrients while photosynthesizing.

In cultivation, it grows in grasslands and open woodlands in drier parts of the Pacific Northwest; it prefers well-drained soils and exposure from full sun to partial shade, is salt tolerant, and flowers March–May; as an annual, it can be used in rock gardens, edging, and borders.

Lifecycle

Annual

Height

18-19.5 inches

Sunlight Requirements

Ideally full sun to partial shade.

Soil Type

Well-drained soil

Soil Drainage

Well-drained to moderately well-drained soils

Bloom Color

White with purple and yellow markings

Bloom Time

Spring

Foliage Color

Green, Green to reddish, Green-gray

Growth Rate

Very quickly.

Seasons of Interest

Spring

Propagation Methods

Seeds, Cuttings, Division, Layering

Attracts Wildlife

Attracts bees, Attracts butterflies