Sonoran Desert Naturalist >>> Field Guide >>> Sonoran Desert Flora >>> Hydrophyllaceae

Sonoran Desert Hydrophylls

Annual or perennial herbs mostly of spring. Also a woody shrub of chaparral. Many species.

Notch-leaved Phacelia

Phacelia crenulata

Blue Phacelia

Phacelia distans

Photo © Mike Plagens

Common in spring of wet years on rocky slopes and desert wash banks. Leaves thick and sticky feeling. Vivid flowers with five petals. Detailed Description

Photo © Mike Plagens

Pale blue flowers on an upright spring annual. Leaves soft. Seeds pitted. On rocky slopes and wash banks - common after good winter rains. Detailed Description

Small Eucrypta

Eucrypta micrantha

Spotted Hideseed

Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia

Photo © Mike Plagens

Diminutive spring annual with pale blue bell-shaped flowers and once pinnate leaves. Common after good winter rains. Detailed Description

Photo © Mike Plagens

Diminutive spring annual with pale blue bell-shaped flowers and once or twice pinnate leaves. Common after good winter rains. Detailed Description

Blue Fiesta Flower

Pholistoma auritum

Whispering Bells

Emmenanthe penduliflora

Photo © Laurie Nessle/Mike Plagens

Common to abundant spring annual found on rocky bajadas and wash banks. Stems are long and slender and have backward pointing hair-hooks that are readily felt with fingers. Blue flowers with five lobed corollas. Detailed Description

Whispering Bells, Emmenanthe penduliflora photo copyright M. Plagens k

Less common spring annual found on rocky bajadas and under partial shade. Pale yellow, bell-shaped flowers hang downwards on arcing inflorescence.    Detailed Description

Purple Mat

Nama demissum

Yerba Santa

Eriodictyon angustifolium

Photo © Mike Plagens

Spring annual - small individual plants or forming mats. Oversized rose-purple flowers. On desert flats, gentle slopes and along washes. Detailed Description

Pen & Ink © Mike Plagens

Woody shrub with sticky, shiny leaves and curling spikes of whitish flowers. Found in the Sonoran Desert in transition to chaparral. Detailed Description

Desert Bells

Phacelia campanularia

Photo © Mike Plagens

Blue, blue flowers with five lobes. Very showy. Range extended from California due to planting of seeds by gardeners. Detailed Description

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Copyright Michael J. Plagens, 1999-2011