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beautiful blue-eyed grass, blue-eyed grass, western blue-eyed-grass

Habit Herbs, perennial, cespitose, green to ashy olive when dry, to 3.8 dm, not glaucous.
Stems

branched, with 1–2 nodes, 1.5–5.3 mm wide, glabrous, margins entire to denticulate apically, similar in color and texture to stem body;

first internode 11–33 cm, usually equaling or longer than leaves;

distalmost node with 2–3 branches.

Leaf

blades glabrous, bases not persistent in fibrous tufts.

Inflorescences

borne singly;

spathes green, obviously wider than supporting branch, glabrous, keels entire to denticulate;

outer 14–30 mm, usually 2–7 mm longer than inner, tapering evenly towards apex, margins basally connate 4–7.6 mm;

inner with keel evenly curved to straight, hyaline margins 0.1–0.7 mm wide, apex abruptly widening, ending 0.2–1.3 mm proximal to green apex.

Flowers

tepals light blue to dark bluish violet or rarely purplish or white, bases yellow;

outer tepals often broadly cuneate, 10–17 mm, apex rounded, truncate, or occasionally emarginate, aristate;

filaments connate ± entirely, usually glabrous;

ovary similar in color to foliage.

Capsules

tan to dark brown, globose to obovoid, 3–5 mm;

pedicel erect to ascending.

Seeds

globose to obconic, lacking obvious depression, 1.5–2.2 mm, rugulose.

2n

= 32.

Sisyrinchium bellum

Phenology Flowering early spring–late summer.
Habitat Open, mostly moist, grassy areas and woods
Elevation 0–2400 m [0–7900 ft]
Distribution
map from FNA
CA; OR; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Sisyrinchium bellum is the most common species of Sisyrinchium in California; it is highly variable in habit, flower color, and size. Plants of serpentine areas are intermediate with S. idahoense var. idahoense; plants of the Transverse Ranges are intermediate with S. demissum.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Parent taxa Iridaceae > Sisyrinchium
Sibling taxa
S. albidum, S. angustifolium, S. arizonicum, S. atlanticum, S. biforme, S. californicum, S. campestre, S. capillare, S. cernuum, S. demissum, S. dichotomum, S. elmeri, S. ensigerum, S. funereum, S. fuscatum, S. groenlandicum, S. halophilum, S. hitchcockii, S. idahoense, S. langloisii, S. littorale, S. longipes, S. miamiense, S. minus, S. montanum, S. mucronatum, S. nashii, S. pallidum, S. pruinosum, S. radicatum, S. rosulatum, S. sagittiferum, S. sarmentosum, S. septentrionale, S. strictum, S. xerophyllum
Synonyms S. angustifolium var. bellum, S. eastwoodiae, S. greenei, S. hesperium, S. maritimum
Name authority S. Watson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 12: 277. (1877)
Source FNA vol. 26, p. 363. Treatment authors: Anita F. Cholewa, Douglass M. Henderson†.
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