Polemoniaceae

Polemonium pulcherrimum

Showy Polemonium

Tuft, erect to decumbent, distinctive skunky-smelling. Plant with soft hairs. Basal and stem leaves, the latter becoming abruptly smaller upward. Leaves pinnately divided into 9–21 widely oval to round leaflets. Inflorescence is a crowded cluster or head-like. Flower tube and lobes about same length, tube white, throat usually yellow, lobes blue to white. Grows in talus in subalpine and alpine zones, further north in dry rocky places, at mid to high elevations. Uncommon var. pilosum has hairy stems and leaves, white flowers with yellow throat. Var. pulcherrimum has glands and few hairs on stems and leaves, blue to purple flowers, white to yellow throat.

• Rarity: Uncommon
• Flowering Time: Mid Summer
• Life Cycle: Perennial
• Height:
• Habitat: Subalpine, Alpine, East-Side Forest
• Found In: Olympic Np, Mt. Rainier Np, Steens, Wallowas, Crater Lake Np, N Cascades Np
• Native: Yes