COLLINSIA
File Size: 66 KB
 
Collinsia violacea  Nutt.
Montgomery County, Kansas
Winter annual
Height: 6-14 inches
Family: Scrophulariaceae - Figwort Family
Flowering Period:   April, May
Also Called: Narrow-leaf collinsia, violet collinsia, violet blue-eyed mary.
Stems: 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.
Inflorescences: Raceme; flowers in pairs or bundles from upper leaf axils.
Flowers: 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.
Fruits: Capsule, nearly spherical, 1/5 inch long; seeds 6-12, tiny, dark brown.
Habitat: Open woods and fields; sandy soils.
Distribution: Southeast 1/4 of Kansas.
Uses: Native Americans used an infusion of root to treat coughs and colds.

Collinsia flowers
59 KB
Montgomery County, Kansas
Collinsia calyx
59 KB
Montgomery County, Kansas
Collinsia
67 KB
Montgomery County, Kansas
Collinsia leaves
60 KB
Cherokee County, Kansas
Collins flowers
42 KB
Cherokee County, Kansas
Collinsia
47 KB
Cherokee County, Kansas
Collinsia
96 KB
Cherokee County, Kansas
Collinsia leaves
58 KB
Cherokee County, Kansas