General:
Short-lived perennial, sometimes annual herb from fibrous roots; inconspicuously straight appressed-hairy; stems slender, weak, often decumbent but base not creeping or stoloniferous, 10-40 cm tall.

Leaves:
Lower leaves oblanceolate; middle and upper leaves more oblong or narrowly elliptic to lanceolate; 1.5-8 cm long, 3-15 mm wide, entire, alternate.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of lax, coiled, elongating, terminal clusters, not much longer than leafy part of stem, bracts 0 to few at base; fruiting stalks spreading, mostly longer than the calyces; petals blue, fused at base into a tube that spreads flat (2-5 mm wide) at the top to 5 lobes, with 5 hairy bulges at the throat; fruiting calyces 3-7 mm long, closely appressed-hairy.

Fruits:
Nutlets 4, clustered together, egg-shaped, brown to black, smooth, shining.

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