​Narrowleaf Four O'Clock, Umbrellawort,Mirabilis linearis,Four O'Clock Family (Nyctaginaceae)

Found in dry meadows, roadsides
Seen blooming in August near Hwy 554, Abiquiu

Narrowleaf Four O'Clock grows to 40 inches tall in clumps with an open spreading habit. Leaves are long, narrow and grayish-green up to 4 inches long. Funnel-shaped flowers are ½ inch across with showy stamens and range from white to pink to purple, growing in clusters of three. The leaves and stems are covered in fine hairs. Each small cluster of flowers is surrounded by a bell-shaped involucre which is pale green, sticky-hairy and sometimes purple-tinged. In fruit this inflates and becomes papery and veined and one inch across, resembling a tiny umbrella which gives it another common name, Umbrellawort; wort is an old English name for plant. Traditionally, fruits and seeds were used for food; an infusion of roots was used to treat painful urination, stomach disorders, coughs, and burns. It was also used ceremonially as a life medicine and for good luck in trading or hunting. Source.
​
If you are trying to identify a different flower then you can check what other flowers bloom this month. If you cannot identify a flower from the website, send a photo and where you took it to contact@rockymountainsflora.com. Read online for tips.