Family: Rubiaceae
long-leaved bluets
Etymology: Houstonia: for Dr. William Houston, English botanist, who collected in Tropical America
Plants: erect, perennial, 3"-10" tall forb, several stems often branching toward the top
Leaves: all stalkless, opposite, widely linear to narrowly oblong, mostly smooth
Flowers: blue-purple to white, 4-parted, 1/4"-1/3" wide, tubular with a funnel-shaped mouth, hairy throat; inflorescence a terminal, branched cluster (cyme) of many, short-stalked, crowded flowers; blooms June-Aug.
Fruits: rounded capsule
Habitat: dry; prairie, barrens; in rocky, sandy soil
Conservation Status: Native
Plants: erect, perennial, 3"-10" tall forb, several stems often branching toward the top
Leaves: all stalkless, opposite, widely linear to narrowly oblong, mostly smooth
Flowers: blue-purple to white, 4-parted, 1/4"-1/3" wide, tubular with a funnel-shaped mouth, hairy throat; inflorescence a terminal, branched cluster (cyme) of many, short-stalked, crowded flowers; blooms June-Aug.
Fruits: rounded capsule
Habitat: dry; prairie, barrens; in rocky, sandy soil
Conservation Status: Native
Floristic Rating: Coefficient of Conservatism = 6 Atlas of the Wisconsin Prairie and Savanna Flora: by T.S. Cochrane & H.H. Iltis: habitat, distribution infomation / flowering and fruiting times USDA Plants Database: Federal Distribution and detailed information including photos Dan Tenaglia's The Missouri Flora: Fabulous photographs; detailed descriptions; color and leave arrangement key.