Collinsia torreyi var. wrightii

Wright's blue eyed mary

Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Wright's blue eyed mary is a California native annual found in northern Coast Ranges, high Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, Tehachapi Mountains, Transverse Ranges, and Warner Mountains in conifer forest, often in sandy, granitic soil at elevations of 800 to 4,000 meters. Flowering from May to August, this delicate plant produces small blue and white flowers approximately 4 to 6 millimeters long with distinctive two-toned coloration. Growing with slender stems typically 10 to 30 centimeters tall, it develops an upright, often branching form. Its leaves are distinctively elongated, generally more than 5 times longer than wide, ranging from linear to elliptic in shape. In rocky, well-drained mountain conifer habitats, this graceful annual creates delicate patches of blue and white during its summer blooming period.

Habitat: Conifer forest, often in sandy, granitic soil

Bloom period: May-Aug

Elevation: 800-4000 m

Bioregions: NCoRH, CaRH, SNH, Teh, TR, Wrn.

California counties: San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Amador, Tulare, Mono, Alpine, El Dorado, Inyo, Kern, Tehama, Modoc, Mariposa, Ventura, Placer, Fresno, Mendocino, Shasta, Trinity, Tuolumne, Nevada, Calaveras, Plumas, Lake, Butte, Glenn, Sierra, Humboldt, Colusa, Siskiyou, Madera, Lassen, Santa Barbara, Sacramento

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.