Mertensia maritima var. asiatica

General:
Perennial herb from a taproot and branched, often subterranean stem-base; glabrous throughout; stems several to many, sprawling to decumbent, 10-70 cm long.

Leaves:
Fleshy, with whitish bloom, spoon-shaped to elliptic or egg-shaped, abruptly sharp-pointed, the lower leaves stalked, the others becoming smaller and nearly unstalked upward, entire, mostly alternate in two rows.

Flowers:
Several to many in compact to open clusters, or solitary in leaf axils; corollas tubular bell-shaped, blue or blue-purple, rarely white, sometimes pink in bud, 3-8 mm long; petals fused at base into a short (1-3 mm) tube, with 5 bulges at the throat, flaring at top to a limb and 5 lobes, the limb longer than the tube.

Fruits:
Nutlets 4, clusterd together, 2.5-4 (6) mm long, smooth or slightly wrinkled, flattened, somewhat fleshy, the outer coat becoming inflated and spongy.

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