Blue Fiesta Flower
Pholistoma auritum
Photographed in Maricopa Co., Arizona by Laurie Nessel. February 29, 2008
This image is also hosted at the Wikimedia Commons. The minute hooks can be seen in this enlarged view.
ANNUAL : Slender spring annual that clambers up and through small
shrubs and other plants. The stems have minute grappling hooks along their length that help
maintain the plant's high position amongst the profusion of growth that follows good winter
rains. These hooks can be felt easily under the finger tips by sliding them along the
stem.
FLOWERS: Pale blue flowers with five blue stamens and five lobes to the corolla.
Color can vary from dark blue to almost white. Blooming mostly February to April.
LEAVES: Leaves are divided into rounded lobes and a pair of the lobes more-or-less
encircles the stem (clasping).
RANGE: Frequent throughout the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and southern California,
but present only in years when winter rains have been adequate.
FRUIT: A spherical, bristly capsule with several small seeds.
UNARMED. Excepting the minute hooks this plant is free of thorns and spines.
Hydrophyllaceae -- Waterleaf Family
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At White Canyon Wilderness in Pinal Co., Arizona, I found a number of plants with powdery mildew infections. A full understanding of any species and its environment ought to include the pathogens from viruses to macroscopic fungi as well.
