E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of BC

Hackelia diffusa (Lehm.) I.M. Johnst.
spreading stickseed (spreading hackelia)
Boraginaceae (Borage family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

General:
Perennial herb from a taproot; stems several or sometimes single, spreading stiff-hairy on lower half, more appressed, upswept, straight-hairy above, 20-70 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves well-developed, persistent, stalked, oblanceolate or narrowly elliptic, 6-18 cm long and 8-25 mm wide; stem leaves ample, mostly unstalked and sometimes also clasping upward, lanceolate or lance-oblong to lance-elliptic, 5-12 cm long, 8-18 mm wide; stiff-hairy or appressed, coarsely straight-hairy, entire, alternate.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of several elongating, narrow clusters with leafy bracts at the base; petals white (rarely blue), fused at base into a short, narrow tube that spreads (7-12 mm wide) at top to 5 lobes, with 5 pimply, fuzzy, yellow bulges at the throat.

Fruits:
Nutlets 4, clustered together, with marginal, barb-tipped prickles distinct nearly to the base, facial prickles 8-30, much shorter than marginal ones.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecological Framework for Hackelia diffusa

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, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Avg	Min	Max
Elevation (metres)	1856	1444	2394
Slope Gradient (%)	45	5	86
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	73	30	280
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	3	1	5
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	C
# of field plots species was recorded in:	9
Modal BEC Zone Class	ESSF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in	AT(1), ESSF(5), MS(3)
Source: Klinkenberg 2013

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	S3	Blue	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer.

Key to Hackelia:

1. Flowers 1-3 mm wide; annuals or biennials........................H. deflexa

1. Flowers 4-20 mm wide, biennials or perennials.

2. Flowers white...............................................H. diffusa

2. Flowers blue.

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.)

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