Amsonia tomentosa
Amsonia fugatei
gray amsonia, woolly bluestar
San Antonio bluestar
erect, 11–65 cm, glabrous or tomentose;
branches usually borne on most of stem (occasionally confined to distal portion), well exceeding infructescence.
erect, 18–50 cm, sparsely to moderately pubescent (glabrate);
branches borne on distal part of stem (rarely on most of length), at least slightly exceeding infructescence.
petiole 1–5 mm, glabrous or tomentose (leaves rarely sessile);
leaf blades slightly or moderately heteromorphic;
stem leaf blades ovate to narrowly lanceolate, narrowly to very narrowly elliptic, or elliptic, (2–)3–5(–6) cm × (3–)4–27 mm, margins entire, not revolute, not ciliate, apex acute (somewhat acuminate), surfaces glabrous or densely (rarely sparsely) tomentose;
branch leaf blades narrower than stem leaf blades, (2.2–)3–4.7(–5.6) cm × (2–)3–6(–13) mm.
petiole 0–1(–2) mm, glabrate or sparsely pubescent;
blades heteromorphic;
stem leaf blades narrowly elliptic to narrowly lanceolate, lanceolate, or ligulate, (2.5–)3.2–5.2(–6.7) cm × (3–)5–7(–10) mm, margins entire, slightly revolute, sometimes in part sparsely ciliate, apex acute, surfaces glabrous (sparsely pubescent on midrib);
branch leaf blades linear to ligulate, 2.5–5.5 cm × 1–4 mm.
sepals subulate or narrowly deltate (deltate), (2–)3.5–6(–7.5) mm;
corolla tube green to purplish or pinkish green, (7–)8–12(–13) mm, lobes bluish (violet- to lavender-tinged) to white especially after anthesis (pinkish, bluish, or purple-tinged), (2.8–)4.5–8 mm, outer surface of corolla glabrous.
sepals subulate to narrowly deltate, (3–)4–6 mm;
corolla tube iridescent blue to purplish, (16–)18–23 mm, lobes white to cream, (6.5–)8–11(–13) mm, outer surface of corolla glabrous.
(8–)11–17 × (3–)3.9–5.5(–6.3) mm.
8–10 × 2–3 mm.
erect (aberrantly deformed and spreading), 2–8(–9.5) cm × (4–)4.8–6.8 mm, apex acuminate, glabrous (partly tomentose).
erect, (2.4–)3.7–6(–8.3) cm × 2–4 mm, apex acuminate, glabrous.
Amsonia tomentosa
Amsonia fugatei
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
Both varieties of Amsonia tomentosa have an unusual pattern of variation in pubescence. Stems and leaves are usually either densely tomentose or glabrous, with intermediate density of pubescence rare. In some populations, the two forms are found together, suggesting that indument may be a single-gene trait.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Amsonia fugatei is endemic to Socorro County. It is most similar to A. palmeri, which has smaller flowers.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Stem leaf blades ovate to lanceolate (narrowly elliptic to elliptic), (6–)8–27 mm wide, branch leaf blades markedly narrower, 4–13 mm wide; w, s Arizona, California, Nevada. | var. tomentosa |
1. Stem leaf blades narrowly to very narrowly elliptic or narrowly lanceolate, (3–)4–8(–10) mm wide, branch leaf blades slightly narrower, (2–)3–6(–7) mm wide; n Arizona, Utah. | var. stenophylla |
CA
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