TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL	previous taxon | next taxon Jepson Interchange (more information)
	©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California Print edition is available from the University of California Press

	The second edition of The Jepson Manual (2012) is available from the University of California Press
	See also the Jepson eFlora, which parallels the Second Edition

HYDROPHYLLACEAE

WATERLEAF FAMILY

Richard R. Halse, except as specified; Robert W. Patterson, Family Editor

Annual, perennial herb, shrub, generally hairy, generally taprooted
Stem prostrate to erect
Leaves simple to pinnately compound, basal or cauline, alternate or opposite; stipules 0
Inflorescence: cyme (generally raceme-like and coiled) or flowers solitary
Flower bisexual, generally radial; calyx lobes generally 5, generally fused at base, generally persistent, enlarging in fruit; corolla generally deciduous, rotate to cylindric, lobes generally 5, appendages in pairs on tube between filaments or 0; stamens generally 5, epipetalous, filament base sometimes appendaged, appendages scale-like; ovary generally superior, chamber 1, placentas 2, parietal, enlarged into chamber, sometimes meeting so ovary appears 2–5-chambered, styles 1–2, stigmas generally head-like
Fruit: capsule, generally loculicidal; valves generally 2
Genera in family: 20 genera, 300 species: especially w US; some cultivated (Emmenanthe, Nemophila, Phacelia )
Recent taxonomic note: Recently treated to be included in an expanded Boraginaceae (also including Lennoaceae) [Angiosperm Phylogeny Group 1998 Ann Missouri Bot Gard 85:531–553; Olmstead et al. 2000 Mol Phylog Evol 16:96–112]

NEMOPHILA

Annual
Stem simple to openly branched, prostrate to erect, fleshy, brittle, angled or winged, glabrous to generally bristly
Leaves simple, cauline, opposite or alternate; petiole generally bristly-ciliate; blade pinnately toothed or lobed, generally bristly, upper generally reduced
Inflorescence: flowers solitary in axils or opposite leaves; pedicels longer in fruit, recurved
Flower: calyx bell-shaped to rotate, sinuses generally with spreading or reflexed appendages; corolla bell-shaped to rotate, white, blue, or purple, sometimes spotted or marked; stamens included; ovary chamber 1, style 1, generally lobed 1/3–1/2
Fruit generally 2–7 mm wide, spheric to ovoid, hairy, generally enclosed by calyx
Seeds ovoid, smooth, wrinkled or pitted, with a conic, colorless appendage at 1 end
Species in genus: 11 species: se US, w North America
Etymology: (Greek: woodland-loving)
Reference: [Constance 1941 Univ CA Publ Bot 19:341–398]

Native

N. menziesii Hook. & Arn.

BABY BLUE-EYES

Leaves opposite; lower 1–5 cm; petiole = blade, blade linear-oblong to ovate, 5–13-lobed, lobes obtuse, entire or 1–3-toothed; upper leaves nearly sessile, blade entire or less lobed (sometimes only toothed)
Inflorescence: pedicels 20–60 mm in flower, < 70 mm in fruit
Flower: calyx lobes 4–8 mm, appendages 1–4 mm; corolla 5–20 mm, 6–40 mm wide, bowl-shaped to rotate, bright blue with white center to white (and generally blue-veined and black-dotted); filaments = or > corolla tube, anthers 2–3 mm; style 2–7 mm
Fruit 5–15 mm wide
Seeds 4–20, brown to black, wrinkled and tubercled
Ecology: Meadows, fields, woodlands, roadsides, grasslands, canyons
Elevation: 15–1900 m.
Bioregional distribution: California Floristic Province, East of Sierra Nevada, Mojave Desert
Distribution outside California: Oregon, Baja California
Highly variable; vars. intergrade.

Native

var. atomaria (Fisch. & C.A. Mey.) Chandler

Leaves: upper and lower similar, deeply 5–13-lobed
Flower: corolla 6–12 mm, 10–30 mm wide, white with black dots radiating from center almost to margins, sometimes faintly blue-tinted or -veined; filaments = corolla tube
Seeds 8–12
Chromosomes: n=9
Ecology: Coastal bluffs, grassy slopes
Elevation: 15–1500 m.
Bioregional distribution: Northwestern California, Central Coast, San Francisco Bay Area
Distribution outside California: Oregon
Horticultural information: SUN: 4, 5, 15, 16, 17, 24 &SHD: 7, 14, 20, 21, 22, 23.