PLANT: Perennial, 6-15 cm tall, branched at the base; stems 5-12, spreading to erect, woody below, glandular throughout.

LEAVES: slightly reduced upwards; lower deeply pinnately lobed, the lobes needle-like; upper subpalmately lobed, the lobes 3-5.

INFLORESCENCE: open, with 1-3 pedicelled flowers at branch tips.

FLOWER: calyx 7-8 mm long, the lobes attenuate, needle-like; corolla broadly funnelform, 7-10 mm long, deep blue, the tube usually shorter than the calyx; stamens inserted on the lower tube; anthers located above the throat, bright yellow; stigma located among the anthers or slightly above.

CAPSULE: 4-5 mm long, broadly ovoid. 2n=18,20.

NOTES: Gravelly soils, rocky slopes, canyons, shrublands, woodlands; Apache, Cochise, Navajo, Santa Cruz cos.; 1300-1950 m (4200-6400 ft); May-Sep; AZ to TX and n Mex. Porter, J. M. Aliso 17: 83-85.

REFERENCES: Dieter H. Wilken and J. Mark Porter, 2005, Vascular Plants of Arizona: Polemoniaceae. CANOTIA 1: 1-37.

Duration: Annual

Nativity: Native

Lifeform: Forb/Herb

General: Herbaceous perennial, 6-15 cm tall, spreading to erect, branched at the base; stems 5-12, woody below, glandular throughout.

Leaves: Slightly reduced upwards; lower deeply pinnately lobed, the lobes needle-like; upper subpalmately lobed, the lobes 3-5.

Flowers: Inflorescence open, with 1-3 pedicelled flowers at branch tips; calyx 7-8 mm long, the lobes attenuate, needle-like; corolla broadly funnelform, 7-10 mm long, deep blue, the tube usually shorter than the calyx; stamens inserted on the lower tube; anthers located above the throat, bright yellow; stigma located among the anthers or slightly above.

Fruits: Capsule 4-5 mm long, broadly ovoid.

Ecology: Found in gravelly soils, rocky slopes, canyons, shrublands and woodlands; 4300-6400 ft (1300-1950 m); flowering May-Sep.

Distribution: East-central and se AZ, NM, TX and n Mex.

Notes: Listed as Gilia rigidulum or Giliastrum rigidulum in our area but most specimens have been identified as G. acerosum. Distinguished by the combination of the relatively large (7-10mm), dark blue corollas with yellow centers, the needle-like, glandular leaves and woody bases of plants.

Ethnobotany: unknown

Etymology: Giliastrum is from the Greek, resembling Gilia and acerosum refers to the needle-like leaves.

Synonyms: Gilia acerosa (Gray) Britt., Gilia rigidula subsp. acerosa (A. Gray) Wherry, Gilia rigidula var. acerosa Gray, Giliastrum rigidulum subsp. acerosum (Gray) W.A. Weber

Editor: FSCoburn 2014