Eriogonum nudum

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Eriogonum nudum

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Polygonaceae
Genus:	Eriogonum
Species:	E. nudum

Binomial name

Eriogonum nudum
Dougl. ex Benth.

Eriogonum nudum is a perennial shrub of the wild buckwheat genus which is known by the common name naked buckwheat. The plant is a tall, bare, leafless stem, bifurcating into more stems, each topped with rounded clusters of white or pale pink or yellow flowers growing up to six feet from a basal rosette at the ground, where the flat green leaves are located. The naked stem gives the plant its common name.

Naked buckwheat can be found scattered around the west coast of the United States. This species has one of the widest ecological distributions of all of the buckwheats. It can be found at wet coastal sea level locales and the coldest, driest elevations of the Sierra Nevada, as well as many areas in between. The species is not uncommon, but some specific varieties are quite rare.

Nectar-feeding insects such as butterflies are attracted to buckwheat flowers. At least one butterfly subspecies (Apodemia mormo langei) uses naked buckwheat as its primary food source.

The complex of varieties and subspecies of naked buckwheat includes: