Swertia perennis
Star swertia, Star Swertia
Family: Gentianaceae · Type: perennial · Native
Conservation status: CNPS 4.2
Star swertia is a native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges and northern Sierra Nevada High Country in wet meadows and bogs at elevations of 2,300 to 3,200 meters. Flowering from July to September, this plant produces blue-white to violet flowers with darker veins, arranged in open inflorescences with blossoms 7 to 13 millimeters long. Growing 10 to 50 centimeters tall with generally a single stem and forming 1 to few rosettes, it has an erect and glabrous growth habit. Its distinctive leaves include basal leaves 3 to 16 centimeters long, spoon-shaped to obovate with obtuse tips, and narrow cauline leaves that are elliptic-oblanceolate with slightly pointed tips. Its delicate flowers feature lance-oblong corolla lobes with round nectary pits and a low ridge between stamens.
Habitat: Wet meadows, bogs
Bloom period: Jul-Sep
Elevation: 2300-3200 m
Bioregions: KR, n&s SNH
California counties: Tulare, Fresno, Inyo, Alpine, Siskiyou, Shasta
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.