Plant: perennial herb; to 1 m tall, with a woody caudex; stems erect to prostrate, 3-4 mm in diameter at midpoint, with divergent ramification

Leaves: linear or linear-lanceolate, 2-5 cm long, densely glandular, bright green and sparsely tomentose above, gray and densely tomentose below, the blades (6-)8-15 times longer than wide; base cuneate; margin entire; apex acute to truncate

INFLORESCENCE: racemes, 13-15 cm long

Flowers: calyx tomentose, with abundant glands, 6-8(-9) mm long, the tube 4.5-7 mm long, not appearing plicate, the secondary costae thinner than the primary costae; corolla dark pink with purple tinge in lower half, the tube 25-33 mm long; stamens exserted; filaments purple; anthers dark purple, 1-1.5 mm long, with dorsal insertion and longitudinal dehiscence; pistil to 30 mm long

Fruit: NUTLETS 2 mm long, 1 mm wide, oblong, light brown, punctate, with hairs on upper third

Misc: Open mountain forests and canyons with ponderosa pine, oaks, granitic substrate; 450-2300 m (1500-7600 ft); Aug-Oct

REFERENCES: Christy, Charlotte M. 2003. Lamiaceae. J. Ariz. - Nev. Acad. Sci. Volume 35(2).

Duration: Perennial

Nativity: Native

Lifeform: Subshrub

General: Herbaceous perennials, to 1 m tall, stems erect to prostrate, 4-angled, divergently branching, plants with a woody caudex.

Leaves: Opposite, linear to linear-lanceolate, 2-5 cm long, with acute to truncate apices, cuneate bases, and entire margins, surfaces bright green, densely glandular and sparsely tomentose above, gray and densely tomentose below.

Flowers: Red or dark pink with a purple tinge in the lower half, bilabiate with tubular throats, large and showy, corolla tubes 25-33 mm long, calyx tube 4.5-7 mm long, with tomentose surfaces and abundant glands, also with secondary ribs thinner than the primary ribs, stamens exserted with purple filaments and dark purple anthers, the anthers 1-1.5 mm long, with dorsal insertion and longitudinal dehiscence, pistil to 30 mm long, flowers borne in densely-flowered racemes at stem tips, these 13-15 cm long.

Fruits: Oblong nutlets to 2 mm long and 1 mm wide, surfaces light brown and punctate (dotted), with hairs on the upper third of the fruit.

Ecology: Found on granitic substrates, in open mountain forests and canyons with ponderosa pine and oaks, from 1,500-7,500 ft (457-2286 m); flowering August-October.

Distribution: Arizona, New Mexico.

Notes: The flowers of this species are long, tubular, and slender with a small limb and narrow throats, somewhat resembling a sky rocket or Gilia with exserted stamens with red anthers and rounded corolla lobes. Look for this species in Arizona in Coconino, Gila, Pinal, Pima, and Cochise counties. Kearney and Peebles note an apparent hybridization between A. rupestris and A. wrightii in Santa Cruz county, that may describe a new species, see pp. 736-737 for more info.

Ethnobotany: Specific uses for this species are unknown, but other species in the genus have uses.

Synonyms: None

Editor: LCrumbacher2012

Etymology: Agastache comes from agan, "very much," and stachys, "an ear of corn or wheat," having many spikes, and rupestris means growing among rocks.