Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - American bellflower

AMERICAN BELLFLOWER

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Campanulastrum americanum (L. ) Small

[=Campanula americana L.]

Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas

Annual

Height: 2 - 6 feet

Family: Campanulaceae - Bellflower family

Flowering Period: July, August, September

Also Called:

Tall bellflower.

Stems:

Erect, leafy, usually un-branched.

Leaves:

Alternate, simple, stalked, thin, lanceolate to ovate-oblong, 3-6 inches long, 1/2 to 2 inches wide, often broadest at middle, glabrous or somewhat pubescent; bases narrowed; margins conspicuously toothed; tips pointed; upper leaves gradually reduced.

Inflorescences:

Racemes, elongate, spike-like, 15-30 inches long, sparsely or densely flowered.

Flowers:

Deeply 5-lobed; calyx lobes linear, spreading; corollas wheel-shaped, approximately 1 inch wide, blue with whitish centers; style long-protruding, bending downward then curving upward.

Fruits:

Capsules, stiffly erect, 1/4 to 1/2 inch long; seeds chestnut-brown, lustrous.

Habitat:

Damp shaded sites, open woods, and stream banks.

Distribution:

Principally in the east third of Kansas.

Forage Value:

White-tailed deer sometimes consume the leaves.

American bellflower