Latin name: Gilia cana (M.E. Jones) A.A. Heller ssp. triceps A.D. Grant & V. Grant
Pronunciation: JEE-lee-a (or GIL-ee-a*) KAY-na TRY-seps
Common name: Three-headed showy gilia
Family: Polemoniaceae (Phlox)
Habitat: Dry places, creosote bush scrub to pinyon-juniper woodland, 2500'-5000', East Mojave, Death Valley
Blooming period: April to May
Name derivations: 1) Gilia 2) cana 3) triceps
*When an epithet is derived from a personal name, an attempt should be made to preserve the pronunciation of the original name, which in this case is Gilii. In Italian a ‘g’ before an ‘i’ has a soft rather than a hard sound, and ‘i’ is pronounced as ‘ee’, so Gilia should properly be said as ‘JEE-lee-uh.’ Most people however will continue to say it as GIL-ee-a.
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