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Eriogonum inflatum Torr. & Frém.

Desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper

KingdomPlantaePlants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
SubkingdomTracheobiontaVascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
DivisionMagnoliophytaFlowering plants, also known as angiosperms
ClassMagnoliopsidaDicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
SubclassCaryophyllidaeCacti, many other succulents, carnivorous plants, and leadworts
OrderCaryophyllalesIncludes cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and many carnivorous plants
FamilyPolygonaceaeKnotweed or smartweed family
GenusEriogonumFrom Greek erion, “wool,” and gonu, “joint or knee,” for the hairy or woolly joints in the stems of some of these species
Speciesinflatum“Inflated,” for the thickened stem, which stores CO₂

About plant names...

Desert trumpet is native to portions of western North America. I grew up in the northeast and have seen very little of the southwestern desert. When I first glimpsed this plant from the car window in Nevada (photo 19), I was deeply impressed. "Susie! Stop the car!" I walked back a quarter mile to find my “exotic” plant, and returned, very pleased with myself. Okay, so it isn’t really exotic, but it looked to me like something from another planet.

This table compares desert trumpet to a close relative, kidney-leaf buckwheat.

 

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

1 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 20 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

2 · 5/2/2018 · Forty-nine Palms Canyon Trail, Forty-nine Palms Oasis, Joshua Tree, Cali­fornia

  You are here
Eriogonum inflatum

Eriogonum reniforme
Common Name

desert trumpet

kidney-leaf buckwheat
Plant 2' high. Less than 2' high.
Flowers Yellow, about 1/4" across, with greenish or reddish midribs; inconspicuous. Very small, yellow, turning reddish later.
Stem Some stems have inflated regions. Stems are not inflated.
Range/ Zones

Habitats Creosote Bush Scrub, Joshua Tree Woodland, Sagebrush Scrub, Pinyon-Juniper Woodland, between -50 and 6500' Creosote Bush Scrub, Joshua Tree Woodland, less than 5000'
Type Wild Wild
Occurrence Common Common

 

Plants: Up to 2′ (60 cm) in height. It’s distinguishing characteristic is the inflated stems, which I assumed were for storage of water. Pro botanists assumed these expanded regions were galls. Some insects secrete hormones that cause a plant to grow abnormally, producing galls: a house on demand for raising baby bugs. But this isn’t the case either. If the Wikipedia article is right, the expanded areas house carbon dioxide gas, which plays an as-yet unknown role in the plant’s life cycle. The stem inflation is less likely to occur later in the season. Area natives sometimes made makeshift pipes from the hollow stems, hence the common name indian pipeweed.

Leaves: Desert trumpet is drought deciduous: it frequently drops its leaves entirely when it is dry, but the green stems are also capable of photosynthesis, sustaining the plant.

Flowers: Tiny yellow or pink flowers, with greenish or reddish midribs, are 1/16-⅛″ (2-3 mm) in size.

Fruits: Achenes are light brown to brown, and roughly lens-shaped.

Online References:

Wildflowers, Ferns & Trees of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah

Wikipedia

George and Audrey DeLange's Arizona wildflower site

Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

CalPhotos

Jan.ucc.nau.edu

The Mindbird Maps and Books unofficial Mojave National Preserve site

EFloras

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

3 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

4 · 5/2/2018 · Forty-nine Palms Canyon Trail, Forty-nine Palms Oasis, Joshua Tree, Cali­fornia

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

5 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd, Joshua Tree National Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

6 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

7 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park · ≈ 1 × 1½′ (34 × 52 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

8 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

9 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

10 · 5/2/2018 · Forty-nine Palms Canyon Trail, Forty-nine Palms Oasis, Joshua Tree, Cali­fornia

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

11 · 4/28/2018 · Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 15 × 10″ (39 × 26 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

12 · 4/29/2018 · Willow Spring Picnic Area, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

13 · 4/28/2018 · Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

14 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park

 

Eriogonum inflatum description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 27 Oct 2023.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.


 

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

15 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

16 · 5/3/2018 · Park Blvd., Joshua Tree National Park

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

17 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

18 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

19 · 6/4/2009 · Nevada

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

20 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 20 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

21 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 19 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

22 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

23 · 2/28/2010 · Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Cali­fornia · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

24 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)

Eriogonum inflatum (desert trumpet, Indian pipeweed, bottle stopper)

25 · 4/29/2018 · Sandstone Quarry, Scenic Loop Road, Red Rock Canyon, Nevada · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

Range:

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