Amsonia tabernaemontana (Dwarf bluestar)

Amsonia tabernaemontana Walter

Dwarf bluestar, common bluestar, eastern bluestar

Bluestar is native to the central United States.

Plants: Perennial, 1–3′ (30–91 cm), forming large clumps with many branches. Stems are light green, smoothly cylindrical, and hairless.

Leaves: Narrow, oval, bright green above, pale below, 2–4″ (5–10 cm) long. Leaves have a petiole (stem) up to 1″ (2.5 cm) long.

Flowers: In compact, rounded panicles. Each flower is tubular, opening to a star of five narrow pointed light blue petals ½–¾″ (1.3–1.9 cm) around. Flower centers are pale yellow. They appear in May.

Fruits: Cylindrical seed pods are 3–4½″ (8–12 cm) long, containing hard, black seeds. Pods are curved and sharp-tipped.

Habitats: Rocky woodlands and ravines, stream borders, limestone glades, and moist sandy meadows.

Online References:

Illinois Wildflowers

Mastergardener.extension.wisc.edu (Great photos and info)

North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Go Botany

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 14

5/22/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm)

5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 2 × 1′ (62 × 41 cm)

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts

5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Gentianales	Gentians, coffee, gardenias, frangipani, many others
Family	Apocynaceae	Dogbane family
Genus	Amsonia	Bluestars; named for botanist Charles Amson
Species	tabernaemontana	For the 16th-century German herbalist Jakobus Theodorus Tabernaemontanus

About plant names...

Range: Zones 3-9:

About this map...

Amsonia tabernaemontana description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.