General:
Perennial herb from a thick, fleshy root; stems 1-many, ascending to erect, 0.2-1.2 m tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves few, essentially reduced to short bracts; stem leaves opposite, oblong-lanceolate, 3-6 cm long, 7-15 mm wide, 10-15 pairs, the lowest reduced to short bracts joined at the base for most of their length, upper leaves becoming gradually larger.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of several stalked or unstalked flowers; corollas blue mottled with streaks of green, tubular to funnel-shaped, 3-4.5 cm long, 5-lobed, the lobes oblong to kidney-shaped, nerved, the plaits of the sinuses squared off or round, entire; calyx tubes 8-14 mm long, the lobes shorter than the tubes and narrowly lanceolate; stamens slightly shorter than the corolla tubes; anthers 3-4 mm long.

Fruits:
Capsules, elliptic-oblong; seeds spindle-shaped, wingless, finely net-veined, light brown, 1.5-2 mm long.

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

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Gentiana menziesii Griseb.
Gentiana sceptrum var. cascadensis M.E. Peck
Gentiana sceptrum var. humilis Engelm. ex Gray