Boraginaceae

Hackelia micrantha

Blue Stickseed

Erect. Stems hairless or with hairs sparse and spreading. Leaves lance-shaped, with pointed tips. Few basal leaves 3–6 in. long with winged petioles; upper leaves smaller, sessile. Blue flowers with yellow or white eye, on widely spreading branches of upper stem. Flowers can be 1/3 in. across but are often smaller. Seed nutlets have winged margin with numerous prickles; between the margins are 4–10 prickles. Grows in moist meadows with aspen, moist slopes, streambanks in mountains, at high elevations. Hackelia floribunda is similar but has a denser inflorescence, coarse hairs on stems, few or no prickles on seeds.

• Rarity: Locally Common
• Flowering Time: All Summer
• Life Cycle: Perennial
• Height: 12--40 inches
• Habitat: Meadow, Shrub-Steppe
• Found In: Wallowas, Steens, Crater Lake Np, N Cascades Np
• Native: Yes