Nemophila phacelioides
Family: Hydrophyllaceae
Description: Plant is upright to straggling, hairy annual to 3-l0 cm or higher with lobed or pinnately compound leaves 1-10 cm long. Flowers solitary, the corolla 2-3 cm wide, pale violet-blue with white center.
Field Identification: This is an annual herbaceous plant. It blooms in the spring, where it produces large showy flowers with a blue or purple outer edge, bowl-shaped blossoms are frosted or whitish in the center and occur from leaf axils or in clusters at stem tips. The flowers have five petals. The leaves of the plant are irregular, with about 7-10 teeth. The plant can often form a blanket cover over the ground.
Plant Trivia: This plant is generally found just north of Corpus Christi but is sporadically found in the Corpus Christi vicinity.
Occurrence: Fairly frequent on various soils in stream bottoms and coastal woodland, usually shaded. Native to the central United States.
Bloom Period: Mar-May
Plant Use: Spring nectar source. Landscaping.
Dichotomous Key: This is the only species of Nemophila found in the Texas Coastal Bend.
