Family: Boraginaceae
western stickseed
[Echinospermum redowskii (Hornem.) Lehm.]
from USDA Plants website
University of Wisconsin - Madison (WIS-VP)
Etymology: Lappula: diminutive of lappa for "bur"
Plants: erect, annual, 8"-32" tall forb, rough, hairy
Leaves: stalkless
Flowers: blue, 5-parted, 1/8" wide, funnel shape, stalked, tube length about the same as the petal's width, stamens shorter than the petals, linear to lance-like bracts; inflorescence a many-branched, helix-shaped cluster (cyme) at the ends of the branches; blooms May-Sept.
Fruits: nutlet, stalked, prickles on margins in 1 row and distinct to the base
Habitat: disturbed areas
Conservation Status: Introduced - adventive
Plants: erect, annual, 8"-32" tall forb, rough, hairy
Leaves: stalkless
Flowers: blue, 5-parted, 1/8" wide, funnel shape, stalked, tube length about the same as the petal's width, stamens shorter than the petals, linear to lance-like bracts; inflorescence a many-branched, helix-shaped cluster (cyme) at the ends of the branches; blooms May-Sept.
Fruits: nutlet, stalked, prickles on margins in 1 row and distinct to the base
Habitat: disturbed areas
Conservation Status: Introduced - adventive
Introduced from farther west and collected only a handful of times from along railroad tracks and once in an opening in an oak forest; first collected in 1919.
USDA Plants Database: Federal Distribution and detailed information including photos
from USDA Plants website
