Harsh Paintbrush

Harsh paintbrush is a colorful perennial wildflower found across much of the west. It consists of a cluster of hairy (hispid) stems arising 20 to 60 cm tall from a woody base. The stems are primarily unbranched and most often fairly villous or hairy. The leaves are narrowly to broadly lanceolate with the lower leaves entire and reduced in size while the upper ones larger, narrower and often with one or two pairs of lateral lobes. Occasionally the leaves are all entire margined. The inflorescence is typically striking in coloration. It is often bright red, scarlet, or even yellow in color. The bracts are wide and deeply 3-5 lobed and more or less hairy. The calyx is 15-30 mm in length and deeply and subequally cleft above and below. The lobes are again divided 1-7 mm into two rounded to acute segments. The corolla ranges from 20-40 mm long, puberulent to pubescent, and equaling the tube in length and five or more times the length of the dark green, thickened, lower lip.