General: Perennial herb from a taproot and branching base; stems several to numerous, relatively sparsely hairy with coarse, stiff-spreading and (especially upward) short, appressed, straight hairs, 0.3-1 m tall.
Leaves: Basal leaves usually well-developed, persistent, oblanceolate or narrowly elliptic, stalked, 6-35 cm long and to 4 cm wide; stem leaves also well-developed, 5-20 cm long, 7-20 mm wide, the lower oblanceolate and stalked, the upper narrowly elliptic to oblong and unstalked, reduced upward, short appressed-hairy or coarsely stiff-hairy, entire, alternate.
Flowers: Inflorescence of several clusters with leafy bracts at the base, tending to be shorter, wider, and looser than that of H. floribunda; petals blue, fused at base into a short, narrow tube that spreads (5-11 mm wide) abruptly at top to 5 lobes, with 5 minutely pimply, yellow or whitish bulges.
Fruits: Nutlets 4, with marginal, barb-tipped prickles mostly distinct to the base, facial prickles several (usually 4-10), much shorter than marginal.
3. Nutlets with marginal prickles only.......................................H. floribunda
3. Nutlets with central (facial) prickles in addtion to marginal ones.
4. Marginal prickles united for at least 1/3 their length, forming a cup..........................H. ciliata
4. Marginal prickles mostly distinct to base, not forming a cup................................H. micrantha
Source: Illustrated Flora of British Columbia (Douglas et al.)
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Hackelia micrantha
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range. (Updated August, 2008)
Dry to mesic rocky slopes, grasslands, shrublands and forest openings in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; frequent in C and S BC east of the Coast-Cascade Mountains; E to AB and S to UT and CA.
