''Collinsia linearis'' is a species of flowering plant in the
plantain family
Plantaginaceae, the plantain family, is a large, diverse family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales that includes common flowers such as snapdragon and foxglove. It is unrelated to the banana-like fruit also called "plantain." In older cl ...
known by the common name narrowleaf blue-eyed Mary.
It is native to the
coniferous forests
Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extant ...
of the
Klamath Mountains in northern
California and southern
Oregon sometimes on
serpentine soil
Serpentine soil is an uncommon soil type produced by weathered ultramafic rock such as peridotite and its metamorphic derivatives such as serpentinite. More precisely, serpentine soil contains minerals of the serpentine subgroup, especially anti ...
s. It has also been seen in the
Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
.
Description
''Collinsia linearis'' is an
annual herb
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
producing an erect stem 10 to 40 centimeters tall with narrow leaves turned under at the edges.
The
inflorescence is a series of nodes, each bearing 1 to 5 flowers. Each flower arises on a
pedicel
Pedicle or pedicel may refer to:
Human anatomy
*Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures
...
coated in glandular hairs. The corolla of the flower angles sharply from the calyx of
sepals. It is white to purple-tinted to deep purple-blue, and sometimes bicolored. There are two upper lobes and three lower lobes, the middle lower lobe forming a pouch.
External links
Jepson Manual Treatment of ''Collinsia linearis''''Collinsia linearis'' — U.C. Photo gallery
linearis
Flora of California
Flora of Oregon
Flora of the Klamath Mountains
Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States)
Plants described in 1880
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Plantaginaceae-stub