involucrata – from Latin involu meaning wrapped or enveloped

• circle or collection of bracts, referring to the two bracts cupping the pair of flowers/fruits

Native range: Western North America

Leaves:

• opposite
• elliptic-ovate
• 2-5” long
• ~pubescent underneath
• bright green

Flowers:

• erect
• tubular w/ 5 lobes
• 1/4 - 3/4” long
• yellow or tinged w/ red pubescent
• in pairs cupped by large greenish-purplish bract

Fruit:

• berries
• 2 (“twin”)
• shiny black w/ 2 pairs of purple-maroon bracts

Other characteristics:

• erect to straggly shrub to 10 ft.
• young stems green and quadrangular (cross-section is square)

Ecology & Adaptations:

• both sides of the Cascades in Washington; Alaska south to California, east to Montana and New Mexico
• moist forest, clearings, open woods, stream-side habitats, swamps and thickets
• at low to subalpine elevations
• brackish tidal swamps and sandy areas along the coast
• shade tolerant but often found in full sun
  • shade leaves have been observed to be larger and thinner than sun leaves, maximizing light capture area and minimizing investment in each photosynthesizing structure
• pollinated by insects (bee flies, bees and butterflies) and hummingbirds seeking nectar and pollen
• seed dispersal – fruits consumed, acid-washed and deposited by birds, such as quail, grouse, thrushes and other songbirds, and small mammals
• wildlife:
  • food for birds and small mammals
  • host for the larva of certain butterflies, including Gillett’s checkermallow, which hatch from eggs deposited in leaves exposed to the greatest amount of sunlight
• herbivory and microbial defense:
  • leaves and stems contain bitter-tasting compounds that deter herbivores and defend against microbial attack
  • these tissues are generally not considered palatable to large mammals, but elk, moose, mountain goats, and deer browse the leaves or twigs in some areas
  • hairs on leaves and flowers discourage herbivores and insects
• adapted to wide range of soils that vary from coarse sand to fine textured silt and clay with a pH of 5 to 8 (moderately high acidity to slightly basic), and from moist to saturated
• can tolerate low salinity (<5 ppt), for example, growing among or on driftwood just above the high tide line
  • hairs on leaves may aid water regulation and prevent loss