The
photo at right shows a leaf and the inflorescence of corrugated spring parsley
as seen along Cottonwood Creek on the northeast flanks of Pueblo Mt in southeastern
Oregon.........May 28, 2000. Note the broad, flat leaflets of this species, which
is a major difference from other members of the genus Cymopterus.
Corrugated spring parsley is a perennial wildflower with a short flower scape arising from 3-10 cm long from a long, thickened taproot. The pale greenish to reddish leaves are oblong-ovate in outline with thick blades up to 4 cm long. The leaf blades are pinnately compound with 3-5 broad lobes .
The scapes are typically shorter than the leaves. The inflorescence is a compact umbel subtended by many narrow bractlets with membranous margins. The flowers have white petals. The fruits are oblong-ovoid in shape and are 4-8 m long. The wings are corrugated and narrow while the other ribs are corrugated too.
Corrugated spring parsley is found on dry, open slopes in the intermountain basins. It is common in sandy, tuff, or clay soils within the shadscale/marsh or sagebrush zone between the elevations of 750-1400 meters.
Corrugated spring parsley may be found from Lake, Harney and Malheur Counties of southeastern Oregon east to central Owhyee and Canyon Counties of southwestern Idaho and south to the east of the Sierra Nevada through the western half of Nevada.
