General: Dwarf Phlox (Phlox condensata) is a mat-forming perennial forb that grows in rocky areas on the forest floor. Leaves are small and covered in hairs. In the spring, the plant becomes covered with white, five-petaled, tubular flowers with the illusion of a yellow center due to the stamens.

Dwarf Phlox is a fairly common component of mountain vegetation communities in the Upper Sonoran (Pinyon-Juniper Woodland), Transition (Yellow Pine Forest), Canadian (Pine-Fir Forest), Hudsonian (Bristlecone Pine Forest) and Alpine Tundra (Alpine) life zones. Around Las Vegas, look for this species up in the mountains, such as on Mt. Charleston in the Spring Mountains and in the Sheep Range on the Desert National Wildlife Range.

Family: Phlox (Polemoniaceae).

Other Names: Phlox caespitosa ssp. condensata.

Plant Form: Perennial forb, mat.

Height: To an inch high or so.

Stems: Prostrate.

Leaves: Blade tiny, lanceolate, covered with hairs.

Flowers: Blooms during spring and early summer. Inflorescence: solitary flowers growing from stem tips. Flower white or light pink, tubular with 5 spreading lobes (petals).

Seeds:

Habitat: Rocky areas on the forest floor.

Elevation: About 6,500 to 13,000 feet.

Distribution: California to Colorado and New Mexico.

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