Plant Name
Scientific Name: Nama hispidum
Synonyms: Nama foliosum, N. tenue
Common Names: Bristly Nama, Sandbells
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Annual
Growth Habit: Herb/Forb
Arizona Native Status: Native
Habitat: Desert, Upland. This attractive wildflower grows in sandy areas.
Flower Color: Pinkish violet to lavender, White (rare)
Flowering Season: Spring, Fall. It blooms first in the springtime, and then again in the fall after the summer monsoon rains.
Height: Up to 1 foot (30 cm) tall, but usually less
Description: The flowers are bell-shaped, 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) long, and have 5 rounded lobes and a white-ringed, yellow center. The leaves are green, densely hairy, evenly distributed along the stems, plump-looking, deeply-veined, and have rolled-under margins. The plants are low-growing and spreading.
The similar Purplemat (Nama demissum) has flat leaves without rolled-under margins or deeply recessed center veins.
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Solanales
Family: Hydrophyllaceae – Waterleaf family
Genus: Nama L. – fiddleleaf
Species: Nama hispidum A. Gray – bristly nama
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