Phacelia campanularia – Desertbells

Phacelia campanularia - Desertbells, Desert Bell, Desert Bluebells, California Bluebell

Phacelia campanularia - Desertbells, Desert Bell, Desert Bluebells, California Bluebell

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Phacelia campanularia

Common Names: Desertbells, Desert Bell, Desert Bluebells, California Bluebell

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Annual

Growth Habit: Herb/Forb

Arizona Native Status: Native, Introduced. This showy wildflower is often included in desert wildflower seed mixes, and the plants found here may be naturalized escapees from cultivation.

Habitat: Desert. It is most common along roadsides and in sandy desert washes.

Flower Color: Dark to medium cobalt blue

Flowering Season: Spring

Height: Up to 2 feet (61 cm) tall, but usually much less

Description: The flowers are bell-shaped, 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide, and have 5 broad lobes. The leaves are dark green, fuzzy, heart-shaped, coarsely toothed, and edged in dark red. The stems are reddish and hairy.

Special Characteristics

Allergenic – The foliage can cause contact dermatitis in sensitive persons, but luckily there is little reason to handle this plant since it is not transplantable and does not make a good cut flower.

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: Phacelia Juss. – phacelia
Species: Phacelia campanularia A. Gray – desertbells

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map