Narrative
Native annual forb, endemic to southern Texas. Found in sandy, gravelly, sometimes linestone or alluvial silty soil, near riverbanks, coastal dunes, open areas in coastal live oak forests, bottoms of washouts, in semi-desert Opuntia-Mesquite scrub and shrub thickets, roadsides, chaparral pastures, fallow fields, or other disturbed areas on both sides of the lower Rio Grande River and adacent areas of south Texas. Flowers from March through November. Sparsely branched or unbranched annual (rarely perennial) 2-6 cm. tall, glandular-viscid; leaflets 3, leaves rounded or oblanceolate, 2-4 cm long, 5-20 mm wide, petals 5-16 mm long. Petals pink or rose 6-17 mm long , longest stamens 12-17 mm long, style 3-5 (-8) mm long; bracts ovate to often nearly orbicular; raceme often dense and flat-topped; capsules narrow (3-) 4-7.5 cm long, (3-) 4-5 (-7) mm wide, sparsely glandular; seeds prominently roughly tuberculate-rugose. Cleaned seed has an average of 154,000 seeds per pound. Seed identified by the pronouncedly ruguose-verruose (covered with blisters and ridges) nature. Largely an insect pollinated species. Insect abundance and diversity exceptionally high in clammyweed stands in comparison to other native herbaceous plants. Recommended for upland wildlife plantings and in range seeding mixes. Seed eaten by game birds such as bobwhite quail, scaled quail, mourning doves, white-wing doves, and Rio Grande wild turkeys, and many non-game species of birds and mammals. An important nectar plant for many species of butterflies and provides habitat to many other insects. Quick to establish on disturbed soils, grows quickly and provides a favorable environment for other slow to germinate native species. Is often the first planted species to emerge and flower. Readily re-seeds itself with moderate soil disturbance. Often found in dense stands of non-native grasses and may be useful in efforts to diversify these stands for wildlife.