Blue waxweed

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Blue waxweed

Blue waxweed inflorescence

Blue waxweed hypanthium

Blue waxweed leaf

Blue waxweed

Morphology

Stem

Erect, often purplish-red, much-branched; branches ascending; upper stem with sticky hairs throughout.

Leaves

Opposite, entire, lanceolate to ovate, 2/5 to 2 inches long, 1/5 to 3/5 inch wide, glandular-hairy; tip pointed; stalk 1/8 to 3/5 inch long, with sticky, purplish hairs.

Inflorescence

Solitary or paired flowers in upper leaf axils.

Flower

Short-stalked; hypanthium tubular, 1/3 to 1/2 inch long, deep purple, covered with dense, purple, sticky glandular hairs; ribs 12, prominent; base swollen on 1 side; calyx teeth 6; petals 6, purple or magenta, 1/12 to 1/5 inch long, dissimilar; upper 2 petals larger than bottom 3; stamens 11-12, of unequal lengths; style slender; stigma 2-lobed.

Fruit

Capsule, ellipsoid, enclosed by persistent calyx, splitting longitudinally on upper side at maturity; seeds 7-10, broadly egg-shaped or nearly round, 1/12 to 1/10 inch long, flattened, brown, slightly notched at end.

Ecology

Habitat

Roadsides, open woods, prairies, fields; dry soils.

Distribution

East 1/5, generally south of Kansas River, and Coffey County, Kansas

Additional Notes