Fremontodendron
Template:Short description Template:Automatic taxobox
Fremontodendron, with the common names fremontia<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and flannelbush or flannel bush, is a genus of three known species of shrubs native to the Southwestern United States and northwest Mexico.<ref>USDA PLANTS: Classification . accessed 2.28.2015</ref><ref>CalFlora Database: Fremontia species . accessed 2.28.2015</ref>
Taxonomy
They are within the botanical family Malvaceae. Formerly they were treated within the Sterculiaceae, tribe Fremontodendreae, together with the genus Chiranthodendron. The genus Fremontodendron was named in dedication to John C. Frémont,<ref name=mlc>Template:Cite web</ref> who first collected it during an 1846 expedition to Alta California.
Description
The leaves have a leathery and fuzzy texture reminiscent of flannel (hence the name), and the yellow to orange flowers are large and showy. The leaves and young shoots can cause skin and eye irritation.
Species
Two species are accepted:<ref name = powo/>
- Fremontodendron californicum Template:Small — Californian flannelbush
- Fremontodendron californicum subsp. californicum
- Fremontodendron californicum subsp. decumbens Template:Small — Pine Hill flannelbush <ref>Calflora: Fremontodendron decumbens . accessed 2.28.2015</ref><ref>USDA Plants Profile for Fremontodendron decumbens (Pine Hill flannelbush) . accessed 2.28.2015</ref><ref>Jepson eFlora: Fremontodendron decumbens . accessed 2.28.2015</ref>
- A decumbent and low spreading form, Template:Convert in height and Template:Convert in width, has yellow-orange flowers, and is endemic to the Sierra Nevada foothills, nearly all of the individuals of this subspecies are found in the Pine Hill Ecological Reserve in El Dorado County. In nature it only grows in metal-rich gabbro soil, a red weathered soil of volcanic origin. It requires fire for seed germination, but with the nature reserve is near human settlements fire ecology is suppressed. It is a federally listed endangered species.
- Fremontodendron mexicanum Template:Small — Mexican flannelbush
- Endemic to the central Peninsular Ranges, known from about ten occurrences in northern Baja California state and adjacent southern San Diego County, California. However, it has most recently been confirmed to exist in only two of those locales currently.<ref name=cnps>California Native Plant Society Rare Plant ProfileTemplate:Dead link</ref>
There are a number of populations of uncertain taxonomy status. They include:
- Fremontodendron californicum subsp. napensis — Napa fremontia
- The current Jepson manual does not recognize this subspecies, using Fremontodendron californicum, but the form is different enough that it is horticulturally recognized by this name. It is typically smaller and more open in form than the species, with much smaller leaves and flowers. It grows Template:Convert in height and Template:Convert in width.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Cultivation
Fremontodendrons are cultivated as ornamental plants. They are valued for their bright yellow flowers, produced over a long period on a rapidly growing shrub or small tree. They are tolerant of pruning for size or shaping. They are adapted to dry, poor soils in a summer-dry, warm, sunny climate. They may succumb to root rot in heavy clay soils and/or summer irrigation.
The three species and varied hybrids/cultivars are used in native plant, water-conserving, and wildlife gardens in California. They are also planted in gardens in England.
Hybrids
There are several named hybrids of Fremontodendron californicum and Fremontodendron mexicanum in the horticultural trade, they include:
- Fremontodendron 'California Glory' — lemon-yellow flowers with a reddish tinge, grows Template:Convert in height by Template:Convert in width. It is the winner of the Award of Garden Merit from the California Horticultural Society in 1965, and received a First Class Certificate from the Royal Horticultural Society in 1967.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>San Marcos Growers: Fremontodendron 'California Glory'</ref>
- Fremontodendron 'Ken Taylor' — golden flowers with a darker orange outside petals in the spring and summer, and grows to only Template:Convert in height by Template:Convert in width.<ref>San Marcos Growers: Fremontodendron 'Ken Taylor'</ref>
- Fremontodendron 'Dara's Gold' — golden flowers over a long period from late winter through early summer, grows Template:Convert in height by Template:Convert in width. A hybrid between Fremontodendron decumbens and Fremontodendron mexicanum.<ref>San Marcos Growers: Fremontodendron 'Dara's Gold'</ref>