Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - Slender Venus' looking-glass

SLENDER VENUS' LOOKING-GLASS

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Triodanis leptocarpa (Nutt. ) Nieuw.

Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas

Annual

Height: 4 - 28 inches

Family: Campanulaceae - Bellflower family

Flowering Period: May, June

Also Called:

Slimpod venus' looking-glass.

Stems:

Erect, slender, simple or branched from the base, 4 to 28 inches tall, with stiff hairs that are pointed downward.

Leaves:

Alternate, linear to lanceolate, up to 1 inch long and less than .2 inch wide, sessile, pointed to rounded tip, entire to scalloped margins, glabrous above and hispid or scabrous below on the veins.

Inflorescences:

1 to 3 flowers in the leaf axils; bracts lanceolate, .4 to 1 inch long, margins entire, tips pointed.

Flowers:

Calyx lobes narrowly lanceolate, often curve back and downward; flowers of 2 forms; upper flowers open at pollination, circular in outline, less than 3/4 inch wide; corollas purple to blue, sometimes with white streaks; petals 5, united at bases, tips pointed; lower flowers small, closed, self-pollinating; corollas purple to blue.

Fruits:

Capsules, 2 forms; capsules of open flowers straight, erect, linear, .6 to 1 inch long; capsules of closed flowers awl- and sickle-shaped, 1/3 to nearly 1 inch long; seeds numerous, oval, light brown, glossy.

Habitat:

Dry, sandy prairies, pastures, and disturbed areas.

Distribution:

Throughout Kansas.

Slender Venus' looking-glass