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Species Details
Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium Read more about this collection »
LeavesAlternate, sessile, simple, linear to lance-shaped, 2-5 cm long, margins entire to three-lobed, three-nerved, appressed-rough-hairy to nearly smooth
FlowersInflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers bilaterally symmetrical; sepals 4 lobed, fused to appear 2-lobed, lobes 2-toothed, form tubular structure, 1.5-3.0 cm long, top half pink to red, lower half green, hairy; petals 5, 2-3.5 cm long, greenish, fused into 2 lips, upper lip hairy, arched, lower lip 3-toothed, short, thick; stamens 4, in pairs, enclosed by the upper lip of the corolla; pistils 1, style slender, exserted, ovary superior
Fruits and SeedsCapsule, 2 valves, oblong, 9-12 mm long, 33-80 seeds; seed-coats loose, net-veined; seeds winged, short beaks, 1-2 mm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide
Scientific Name
Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
Common Name
giant red paintbrush
General Description
Perennial herb; stems simple or sometimes branched, 20-80 cm tall, somewhat woody, clustered or solitary on rhizomes, smooth below, hairy above especially in the inflorescence
Leaves
Alternate, sessile, simple, linear to lance-shaped, 2-5 cm long, margins entire to three-lobed, three-nerved, appressed-rough-hairy to nearly smooth
Flowers
Inflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers…
Inflorescence a terminal spike, 20-25 sessile flowers, bracted; bracts bright red or scarlet to orange, occasionally crimson or rarely yellow, lance-shaped, three-lobed, conceal most of flower, hairy, sticky; flowers bilaterally symmetrical; sepals 4 lobed, fused to appear 2-lobed, lobes 2-toothed, form tubular structure, 1.5-3.0 cm long, top half pink to red, lower half green, hairy; petals 5, 2-3.5 cm long, greenish, fused into 2 lips, upper lip hairy, arched, lower lip 3-toothed, short, thick; stamens 4, in pairs, enclosed by the upper lip of the corolla; pistils 1, style slender, exserted, ovary superior
Fruits and Seeds
Capsule, 2 valves, oblong, 9-12 mm long, 33-80 seeds; seed-coats loose, net-veined; seeds winged, short beaks, 1-2 mm long, 0.4-0.8 mm wide
Phenology
Flowers between June and August
Notes
Similar species:
Castilleja rhexifolia
C. rhexifolia is often confused with C. miniata. C. rhexifolia, commonly known as Rosy Paintbrush because it also resembles a paintbrush, is not scarlet and red colored like C.…
Similar species:
Castilleja rhexifolia
C. rhexifolia is often confused with C. miniata. C. rhexifolia, commonly known as Rosy Paintbrush because it also resembles a paintbrush, is not scarlet and red colored like C. miniata.
Unique adaptations:
This species is a hemiparasite, meaning that resources such as water, nutrients, or chemical compounds are stolen from other plants, but photosynthesis is still performed by the plant to make energy.
It is the brightly colored bracts that gives C. miniata its common name because the inflorescence looks as if it were dipped in red paint.
Range/Distribution
Alberta: Concentrated mainly along the foothills and Rocky Mountains, radiating slightly North and East, making it well distributed throughout Central Alberta
CAN (BC, MB, ON, SK, YT); USA (AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, ND,…
Alberta: Concentrated mainly along the foothills and Rocky Mountains, radiating slightly North and East, making it well distributed throughout Central Alberta
CAN (BC, MB, ON, SK, YT); USA (AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, ND, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY)
Citation
Page Citation for Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
Page Citation
"Species Details - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook., University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium." University of Alberta Museums Search Site, https://search-test.museums.ualberta.ca/g/1-3082/12-96827. Accessed 25 Oct. 2025.
Specimen Information
There are 130 specimens of this Species.
15351 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Maligne Canyon
Date Collected1953-06-20
25851 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Mount Edith Cavell
Date Collected1958-08-15
25300 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Celestine Lake
Date Collected1968-08-11
25580 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Yellowhead Pass
Date Collected1968-08-12
56658 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Rock Lake Provincial Park, Rock Creek
Date Collected1975-08-02
76356 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Amethyst Lakes
Date Collected1971-07-17
76355 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Jasper National Park, Amethyst Lakes
Date Collected1971-07-17
15296 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Twin Butte
Date Collected1939-09-01
15352 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Blakiston Creek
Date Collected1941-08-20
32159 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Blakiston Creek
Date Collected1965-06-21
46130 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Blakiston Creek
Date Collected1972-07-13
46131 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Maskinonge Lake
Date Collected1972-08-02
15303 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Waterton River
Date Collected1953-07-19
73685 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Waterton Lakes National Park, Crypt Lake
Date Collected1946-08-02
75797 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Banff National Park, Tunnel Mountain
Date Collected1899-06-26; 1899-09-16
75611 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Police Outpost Provincial Park, Outpost Lake
Date Collected1974-07-25
75610 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Police Outpost Provincial Park, Outpost Lake
Date Collected1974-06-27
101156 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Kananaskis Country, Gorge Creek
Date Collected1961-06-28
101205 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Kananaskis Country, Gorge Creek
Date Collected1961-06-28
15358 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Kananaskis Country, Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, Highwood Pass
Date Collected1955-07-27
110603 - Castilleja miniata Douglas ex Hook.
University of Alberta Vascular Plant Herbarium
Common Namegiant red paintbrush
Place CollectedNorth America: Canada, Alberta, Siffleur Wilderness Area, Spreading Creek
Date Collected1981-08-02