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

Gentiana douglasiana Bong.
swamp gentian
Gentianaceae (Gentian family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Gentiana douglasiana
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Species Information

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Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

General:
Annual herb from a taproot; stems erect, several, freely branching, angled, 5-20 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves few, egg-shaped to elliptic, 5-15 mm long, forming a rosette; stem leaves similar, 5-10 mm long, fused at the base and slightly decurrent.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of solitary flowers or more usually a loose cluster of terminal axillary stalked flowers; corollas white with purplish streaks and stipples, 10-13 mm long, tubular with 5 pointed lobes, the lobes blue on the back, plaits of the sinuses 2/3 the length of the lobes, calyces 4-6 mm long, 1/2 the length of the corollas, lobes 1/2 the length of the tubes; stamens shorter than the corolla tubes; anthers 1 mm long.

Fruits:
Capsules, oblong, wing-margined; seeds dark brown, spindle-shaped, 1.5 mm long.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Wet bogs and meadows from the lowland to alpine zones; common in coastal BC; N to SE AK and S to WA.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Gentiana douglasiana

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	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	5	307	1090
Slope Gradient (%)	0	15	90
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	0	354	360
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	0	5	8
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	B
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	198
Modal BEC Zone Class	CWH
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	AT(1), CMA(6), CWH(156), MH(35)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Ecological Indicator Information

Very shade-intolerant, submontane to montane, Pacific North American forb; occurrence decreases with increasing continentality. Species occurs in hypermaritime to submaritime cool mesothermal climates on wet to very wet, nitrogen-poor soils. Occasional in semi-terrestrial communities (less frequently in open-canopy forests) on water-collecting sites with surface groundwater table and accumulations of peat. Characteristic of wetlands.

Source: Indicator Plants of Coastal British Columbia (Information applies to coastal locations only)

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is cool mesothermal.

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	S5	Yellow	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer, the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

UBC Herbarium Scanned Collection Record
Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2024-05-16 10:24:05 PM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.