Rosy cow-wheat is a small annual wildflower of East Asia with tubular purplish-red flowers, each with two white, rice-grain-like bumps on the lower lip. It doesn't grow wild in the US. Rosy cow-wheat is a partial parasite: it makes its own food but also taps the roots of nearby plants.
Appearance
- Growth form
- An upright annual, usually about 12–20 in (30–50 cm) tall in Korea and Japan, and recorded from 6 to 31 in (15–80 cm) across its range. The stem is four-angled and usually branched. It is a .
- Leaves
- Leaves are opposite, narrow, and lance-shaped to oval with smooth edges.
- Flowers
- Purple to purplish-red tubular flowers, 0.6–0.8 in (1.5–2 cm) long, with two lips. The lower lip has two white, rice-grain-like bumps. Each flower sits above a green with bristly teeth.
- Flowering time
- Summer to fall across its range; July–August in Korea.
- Fruit
- An egg-shaped capsule about 0.3–0.4 in (8–10 mm) long holding a few black seeds about 1/8 in (3 mm) long.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Thickets on slopes
- Tall grass
- Forest edges
- Range
- Widespread in China and also native to Korea, Japan, and the Russian Far East, usually below about 4,900 ft (1,500 m). It does not grow wild in North America.
- Preferred conditions
- Grows in brushy slopes and among tall grasses; in Korea it is often found at sunny, south-facing forest edges with shallow, slightly acidic soil.
Life cycle
- Seed dispersal
- Each seed carries a white, fatty cap that attracts ants. A study in Korea found four kinds of small ants regularly carrying the seeds away.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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