Collinsia

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Collinsia

Collinsia

Collinsia

Collinsia flowers

Collins flowers

Collinsia leaves

Collinsia

Collinsia leaves

Collinsia calyx

Morphology

Stem

Erect, slender, simple or branched, glabrous below, glandular pubescent above.

Leaves

Opposite or partly whorled, sessile and clasping, lanceolate or elliptic, .6 to 1.8 inch long, .2 to .6 inch wide, broadest near middle or well above base; margins wavy or sparingly toothed; upper stem leaves nearly linear; lowermost leaves ovate, stalked.

Inflorescence

Raceme; flowers in pairs or bundles from upper leaf axils.

Flower

Calyx bell-shaped, 5-lobed, finely pubescent; lobes lanceolate; corolla 2-lipped; upper lip 2-lobed, white, tipped with pale violet, much shorter than lower lip; lobes deeply notched; lower lip 3-lobed, purple, violet, or purple with white stripes extending between lobes; throat yellowish, sometimes with orange lines; lobes deeply notched; middle lobe folded downward, enclosing style and stamens; stamens 4.

Fruit

Capsule, nearly spherical, 1/5 inch long; seeds 6-12, tiny, dark brown.

Ecology

Habitat

Open woods and fields; sandy soils.

Distribution

Southeast 1/4 of Kansas.

Practical Information

Uses

Native Americans used an infusion of root to treat coughs and colds.