Scientific Family
Polemoniaceae
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Native
Lifecycle
Annual
Similar species
Eriastrum diffusum
Height
1 foot
Riparian
No
Annual herb with erect stems, somewhat woody and branching from the base. The plant is covered in woolly hairs. Flowers are single and borne in elongated clusters.
Flower generally bilateral and more than 1/2 inch long; flower lobes are about 1/4 inch long; stamens generally unequal.
Habitat
Open areas in sandy or gravel soils, washes and dry sunny flood-plains, basaltic rocky hillsides.
Plant Community
Desert Scrub
Grasslands
Interior Chaparral
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Low elevation
2000
High elevation
5000
Flower Characteristics
Yellowish buds open into five lobed flowers that are not quite radially symmetric, since the two upper lobes are closer together than the lower three. The corolla throat is bright yellow, while the lobes are bluish purple with dark purple stripes.
Flower color
Blue to light purple with yellow center
Flower shape
Irregular
Tubular
Yes
First bloom month
April
Last bloom month
June
Flower clusters
Elongated
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Leaves are pinnately lobed or simple; lobes are generally linear or lance-shaped. Stem is erect.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Green
Leaf shape
Narrow
Leaf margin
Smooth
Leaves clasp
No
Leaf hairs
Leaves & stems
Spines
No
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Fruit type
Capsule