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Species Details
Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium Read more about this collection »
LeavesAlternate, sessile, simple, linear to lance-shaped, 2-5 cm long, margins entire to three-lobed, three-nerved, appressed-rough-hairy to nearly smooth
FlowersInflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers bilaterally symmetrical; sepals 4 lobed, fused to appear 2-lobed, lobes 2-toothed, form tubular structure, 1.5-3.0 cm long, top half pink to red, lower half green, hairy; petals 5, 2-3.5 cm long, greenish, fused into 2 lips, upper lip hairy, arched, lower lip 3-toothed, short, thick; stamens 4, in pairs, enclosed by the upper lip of the corolla; pistils 1, style slender, exserted, ovary superior
Fruits and SeedsCapsule, 2 valves, oblong, 9-12 mm long, 33-80 seeds; seed-coats loose, net-veined; seeds winged, short beaks, 1-2 mm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide
Scientific Name
Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
Common Name
giant red paintbrush
General Description
Perennial herb; stems simple or sometimes branched, 20-80 cm tall, somewhat woody, clustered or solitary on rhizomes, smooth below, hairy above especially in the inflorescence
Leaves
Alternate, sessile, simple, linear to lance-shaped, 2-5 cm long, margins entire to three-lobed, three-nerved, appressed-rough-hairy to nearly smooth
Flowers
Inflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers…
Inflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers bilaterally symmetrical; sepals 4 lobed, fused to appear 2-lobed, lobes 2-toothed, form tubular structure, 1.5-3.0 cm long, top half pink to red, lower half green, hairy; petals 5, 2-3.5 cm long, greenish, fused into 2 lips, upper lip hairy, arched, lower lip 3-toothed, short, thick; stamens 4, in pairs, enclosed by the upper lip of the corolla; pistils 1, style slender, exserted, ovary superior
Fruits and Seeds
Capsule, 2 valves, oblong, 9-12 mm long, 33-80 seeds; seed-coats loose, net-veined; seeds winged, short beaks, 1-2 mm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide
Phenology
Flowers between June and August
Notes
Similar species:
Castilleja rhexifolia
C. rhexifolia is often confused with C. miniata. C. rhexifolia, commonly known as Rosy Paintbrush because it also resembles a paintbrush, is not scarlet and red colored like C.…
Similar species:
Castilleja rhexifolia
C. rhexifolia is often confused with C. miniata. C. rhexifolia, commonly known as Rosy Paintbrush because it also resembles a paintbrush, is not scarlet and red colored like C. miniata.
Unique adaptations:
This species is a hemiparasite, meaning that resources such as water, nutrients, or chemical compounds are stolen from other plants, but photosynthesis is still performed by the plant to make energy.
It is the brightly colored bracts that gives C. miniata its common name because the inflorescence looks as if it were dipped in red paint.
Range/Distribution
Alberta: Concentrated mainly along the foothills and Rocky Mountains, radiating slightly North and East, making it well distributed throughout Central Alberta
CAN (BC, MB, ON, SK, YT); USA (AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, ND,…
Alberta: Concentrated mainly along the foothills and Rocky Mountains, radiating slightly North and East, making it well distributed throughout Central Alberta
CAN (BC, MB, ON, SK, YT); USA (AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, ND, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY)
Citation
Page Citation for Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
Page Citation
"Species Details - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook., University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium." University of Alberta Museums Search Site, https://search.museums.ualberta.ca/g/1-3082/12-138670. Accessed 15 Dec. 2024.
Specimen Information
There are 83 specimens of this Species.
103017 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Willmore Wilderness Park, Cote Creek
Date Collected1976-08-03
103018 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Willmore Wilderness Park, Cote Creek
Date Collected1976-08-04
103019 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Willmore Wilderness Park, Cote Creek
Date Collected1976-08-04
112985 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Mountain Park
Date Collected1987-06-24
112984 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Watson Creek Provincial Recreation Area
Date Collected1987-06-24
113780 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Burnt Timber Provincial Recreation Area
Date Collected1980-08-03
114757 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Lundbreck Falls
Date Collected1999-07-04
114490 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Banff National Park, Southeast Lyell Glacier
Date Collected1984-07-12
115402 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Willmore Wilderness Park, Eagles Nest Creek
Date Collected1976-08-06
114631 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Pinto Lake
Date Collected2005-06-23
116308 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, British Columbia, Copper Mountain
Date Collected1987-08-11
117741 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Ilka's Fen
Date Collected2007-07-04
118354 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Thompson Creek Provincial Recreation Area
Date Collected2007-06-20
118350 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Allstones Creek
Date Collected2007-06-21
118352 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Cline River
Date Collected2007-07-11
118353 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Crescent Falls Provincial Recreation Area, Crescent Falls
Date Collected2007-08-14
118351 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Kootenay Plains Ecological Reserve, Two O'Clock Creek
Date Collected2007-07-10
118790 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, RB Miller Biological Station
Date Collected1967-06-09
118946 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, William A. Switzer Provincial Park, Gregg Lake
Date Collected1999-09-04
119492 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, British Columbia, Gibraltar
Date Collected1971-06-06
119754 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Kootenay Plains Ecological Reserve, Siffleur Falls
Date Collected2008-06-26