Mertensia ciliata
Encyclopedia
Mertensia ciliata is a species of flowering plant in the borage family
known by the common names tall fringed bluebells and streamside bluebells. It is native to the western United States, where it often grows in moist habitat, such as subalpine meadows and creeksides. It often carpets large areas of meadow and hillside with blue-green foliage and sweet-scented bluebell blooms. It is a perennial herb producing a cluster of erect stems from a thick, branching caudex
. The leafy stems reach well over a meter in maximum height. The veiny leaves are oval to lance-shaped and pointed. The inflorescence
is an open array of many clustered blue bell-shaped flowers each between 1 and 2 centimeters long. The hanging, fragrant flower is tubular, expanding into a wider, lobed mouth. The flowers and leaves are edible.
Boraginaceae
Boraginaceae, the Borage or Forget-me-not family, include a variety of shrubs, trees, and herbs, totaling about 2,000 species in 146 genera found worldwide.A number of familiar plants belong to this family....
known by the common names tall fringed bluebells and streamside bluebells. It is native to the western United States, where it often grows in moist habitat, such as subalpine meadows and creeksides. It often carpets large areas of meadow and hillside with blue-green foliage and sweet-scented bluebell blooms. It is a perennial herb producing a cluster of erect stems from a thick, branching caudex
Caudex
A caudex is a form of stem morphology appearing as a thickened, short, perennial stem that is either underground or near ground level . It may be swollen for the purpose of water storage, especially in xerophytes...
. The leafy stems reach well over a meter in maximum height. The veiny leaves are oval to lance-shaped and pointed. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is an open array of many clustered blue bell-shaped flowers each between 1 and 2 centimeters long. The hanging, fragrant flower is tubular, expanding into a wider, lobed mouth. The flowers and leaves are edible.