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Early Forget-me-not - Myosotis verna
State Rank Reason (see State Rank above)
Known from Montana from a few collections. Native to parts of North America but may be introduced in Montana and the Pacific Northwest.
General Description
Early Forget-me-not is an annual with fibrous roots and simple or branched stems that are up to 2 dm high. The alternate leaves are 1-5 cm long and narrowly oblong with short petioles below, though they are broader and sessile above. Foliage is covered with stiff hairs. Tiny, white, short-stalked flowers are borne on terminal, coiled stems that unwind and elongate as flowering progresses from the base upward. The corolla is ca. 1-2 mm across and has a small, united portion below and 5 spreading lobes, 2 of which are shorter than the others. The calyx is covered with short, hook-tipped hairs and 2 of the lobes are smaller than the others. Within each fruiting calyx are 4 smooth, hard seeds, or nutlets.
Phenology
Flowering in May-June.
Diagnostic Characteristics
The smooth nutlets separate Myosotis from other genera in this family. The white flowers with hooked hairs on the calyx separate this species from the other annual species in the genus.
Range Comments
Maine to Michigan and NE Wyoming, south to Georgia and Texas and from southern British Columbia to Oregon and Idaho.
Habitat
Vernally moist soil of grasslands and shrublands in the valleys.
Ecology
POLLINATORS The following animal species have been reported as pollinators of this plant species or its genus where their geographic ranges overlap:
Bombus appositus and
Bombus melanopygus (Wilson et al. 2010).
Stewardship Responsibility
References
- Literature Cited AboveLegend:
View Online Publication
Wilson, J.S., L.E. Wilson, L.D. Loftis, and T. Griswold. 2010. The montane bee fauna of north central Washington, USA, with floral associations. Western North American Naturalist 70(2): 198-207.
- Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?- Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 771 p.
- Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2022. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants, Second Edition. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 779 p.
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