Washoe Phacelia

Phacelia curvipes

Color: Deep purple to blue

Common name: Washoe phacelia

Latin name: Phacelia curvipes

Family: BORAGINACEAE

Height: 1.5-6 inches

Description: It is an annual herb producing a small, branching stem up to about 15 centimeters long. It is glandular and hairy in texture. The hairy inflorescence is a showy curving cluster of bell-shaped flowers each under a centimeter long. The flowers are deep purple to blue with white throats.

Leaf: The leaves are oval or lance-shaped, 1 to 4 centimeters long, and borne on stalks attaching the leaf blade to the stem.

Range: Mojave Desert, s Sierra Nevada, Tehachapi Mountain Area, Transverse Ranges, East of Sierra Nevada

Habitat: Sandy to rocky slopes, chaparral, oak/pine woodland, coniferous forest

Elevation: 500–2700 m.

Flowering time: Apr–Jun

Notes: Phacelia curvipes, a dicot, is an annual herb that is native to California. Distribution outside California: to sw Utah, nw Arizona. Like all Phacelia, this plant can cause poison ivy-like dermatitis. This photo was taken on May 15, 2004 in the San Bernardino Mountains, California.

We have an online wildflower field guide that is designed to help you identify desert wildflowers by color, scientific name, region and common name. The pictures are sized to work on the iPod, iPhone, iPad and similar devices. With your iPod or phone you will easily be able to identify wildflowers while in the desert. Links for downloads are on the bottom of the Wildflower Field Guide page.

Photo tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function - usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.

Mojave Desert Wildflowers - This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More...

What's Blooming Now - Check the Wildflower Reports

Share this page on Facebook:

DesertUSA Newsletter -- We send articles on hiking, camping and places to explore, as well as animals, wildflower reports, plant information and much more. Sign up below or read more about the DesertUSA newsletter here. (It's Free.)

The Desert Environment
The North American Deserts
Desert Geological Terms

SEARCH THIS SITE

Past Wildflower Season Videos
click on links below

2009 Wildflower Video

2006 Wildflower Season -
Click here to play.

2005 Wildflower Season -
Click here to play.

Mojave Desert Wildflowers Book
200 color photos

Wildflower Field Guide - find flowers by color

Purple & Blue Flowers

Pink, Red, & Orange Flowers

Yellow & Gold Flowers

White Flowers | Guide

Are you interested in the temperatures in the desert?

Click here to see current desert temperatures!

DesertUSA is a comprehensive resource about the North American deserts and Southwest destinations. Learn about desert biomes while you discover how desert plants and animals learn to adapt to the harsh desert environment. Find travel information about national parks, state parks, BLM land, and Southwest cities and towns located in or near the desert regions of the United States. Access maps and information about the Sonoran Desert, Mojave Desert, Great Basin Desert, and Chihuahuan Desert.