Penstemon laetus var. sagittatus

Mountain blue penstemon

Family: Plantaginaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Mountain blue penstemon is a California native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges and northern California Ranges in sagebrush scrub and evergreen forest at elevations of 400 to 2,300 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces blue to purple flowers with a constricted throat and prominently projecting lips. Growing with erect stems 15 to 45 centimeters tall, it forms compact clumps with multiple flowering stalks. Its leaves are narrow, measuring 1.5 to 8.5 millimeters wide, with lance-shaped blades that are typically arranged oppositely along the stem. The flower's distinctive anthers are narrowly arrowhead-shaped, opening along most of their length to release pollen.

Habitat: Sagebrush scrub, evergreen forest

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 400-2300 m

Bioregions: KR, CaR

California counties: Trinity, Siskiyou, Modoc, Humboldt, Del Norte, Shasta

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