[The Genus Nemophila East of the Cascade Mts.]
Little-foot Nemophila, Meadow Baby-blue-eyes, Meadow Nemophila, Spreading Nemophila

Nemophila pedunculata

The photo above shows meadow nemophila as seen from the Old Gorge Highway near Tom McCall Nature Preserve....April 2000.
Photo at right of meadow nemophila as seen from near Tom McCall Nature Preserve, east of Mosier, OR............April 2000. Note the shape of the leaves.
Characteristics:

Also known as spreading nemophila, meadow nemophila is a small, easy to miss wildflower with prostrate or procumbent stems up to 30 cm long. The stems are simple or branched, usually mostly hairless. The leaves are opposite with short hairs lining the the margins of the winged petioles. The blades are deeply pinnatifid and range from 6-25 mm long and 5-17 mm wide. Their are 2-3 pairs of rounded lateral lobes.

The peduncles are 0.7-2 cm long and at first straight while in flower, becoming deflexed in fruit. The calyx lobes are 1.5-4 mm long and about half as long as the corolla. The flowers are narrowly bell-shaped and 2-6 mm wide. The petals are pale lavender, or white marked with lavender.

 

Habitat:

Meadow nemophila may be found in moist, open places, including meadows and bottom lands.

Range:
Meadow nemophila may be found from southern Vancouver Island south through western Washington and throughout Oregon and California to parts of Baja California, and east to southern Idaho and Nevada.
Paul Slichter