Scabland Penstemon (Penstemon deustus)

Cone Peak Trail, Willamette National Forest, OR, 6/2019.

Amazingly….we continue to find more northwest penstemons! This one is unique in its stems of creamy white rather than the traditional purple, pink, or blue flowers (we have also seen a yellow penstemon near the Canadian border). The bee lines in the throat of the flower, which aid their pollinators, are a pleasing contrast in reddish brown. Scabland, or its alternate common name Hot Rock penstemon (and possibly the latin which translates to ‘burned’) likely refers to the volcanic rock where we found these specimens.

For a botanical lesson on penstemons see our post on the Fuzzy-tongue penstemon.